The Battle Mage of Hogwarts: Year 3
by Leaf Ranger
Summary: Harry's got quite a bit of trouble this year. If dealing with more advanced classes and homework wasn't enough, Harry has a deranged escaped prisoner coming after him. But even that doesn't match a dark and terrible foe born from a battle waged centuries ago. Will the events of the past end Harry's future? Read to find out. Rated T for language.
1. A Prisoner and a Shadow

**And now we begin the Third Year of the Battle Mage of Hogwarts series. I'd like to thank everyone who has taken time out of their lives to read these fanfics. It makes me feel happy that so many people enjoy them.**

**Now hopefully, I'll be able to make this fanfic last longer than the others. I felt bad that the first one only went 11 chapters, and the second one only 9. I hope to get at least 15 or more chapters from this one.**

**As an extra note, lovinaelita here on FF has some fanfic requests/challenges for anyone looking for a fanfic to write. If you're interested, Pm him for more details. I think it might be a Naruto based fanfic, and probably NaruHina as well. So, Pm him if you're interested.**

**So let us now begin! Enjoy!**

Disclaimer: I do now own Harry Potter or its characters. They are the property of J. K. Rowling.

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**Chapter 1**

**A Prisoner and **

**A Shadow **

_The North Sea_

The stormy waters of the North Sea beat against a rocky island out in the middle of nowhere. Of course it wasn't just a lump of stone and dirt in the middle of the ocean. It was also the location of the most well guarded prison in the Magical World.

The prison of Azkaban was a massive three sided structure, rising hundreds of feet into the air and surrounded by miles of ocean. The prison was protected from muggle detection by numerous charms and spells.

Inside, the worst criminals of the British Wizarding Society had been locked away for their crimes. The majority of them were former followers of the Dark Lord Voldemort, known as Death Eaters. The rest were criminals who had committed other heinous crimes.

The walls and the ocean were an impressive measure in keeping the prisoners locked away. But they were not the main form of confinement. That was the role of the prison guards.

In one cell, an emaciated figure with long, tatty hair stared out the window of his cell. It was finally his time. His time for revenge. To kill the one who led to his imprisonment here. He knew he had once chance to escape. He just needed to time this right.

He shivered, feeling the approaching cold that signaled the prison guards making their rounds. He had timed their rounds, when they brought food. He grinned a rather vampire like grin, minus the fangs.

Outside, a shadowy figure approached the man's cell door. The cell door was opened enough for the guard to set a tray of food into the room. However, the guard didn't notice the large but thin dog slip through the open door and make a break down the hallway.

About an hour later, a water logged dog managed to stumble onto shore. Panting, the dog lay there, before transforming into the emancipated figure. The man panted, but grinned as he gripped the sand beneath him. Slowly he got up, before letting out a triumphant yell to the sky, raising his hands up. Sirius Black was free.

_UK Battle Mage Sanctuary, Three Days later_

Harry James Potter, Harry to his friends, sat outside the Elder's Chambers. He nervously drummed his fingers on his knees as he waited quietly.

It had been a little over a month since the end of his second year at Hogwarts School of Witch craft and Wizardy. A whole month since he had fought a giant basilisk and defeated the memory and spirit of 16 year old Tom Riddle, also known as the Dark Lord Voldemort.

Upon his return home, he had a party with his family celebrating his graduation and his victory in the Chamber of Secrets. This had been followed the next morning by him being grounded for a month by his parents, and his training upped since he had 'extra time'.

He had still managed to keep in contact with his friends though. Hermione Granger and her family were going to France for most of the summer break. Neville Longbottom was visiting relatives for a bit. And his newest friend, Ginny Weasley, was currently in Egypt with her family. Her father, Arthur Weasley, had won the _Daily Prophet's_ Annual Grand Prize Galleon Draw. They had spent most of the 700 Galleon's they had won on the trip to Egypt to visit the eldest son of the Weasley family, Bill.

Yesterday had been Harry's 13th birthday, which he happily celebrated with his adopted parents Marian and Gareth Wallace, and his adopted younger brother Travis. Harry had gotten the first two books of the _Ranger's Apprentice_ book series, as well as a history book on Goblin blacksmithing techniques, and the armor and weapons they forged. That had been from his family. His friends had gotten him gifts as well.

Hermione had sent him a Broom Servicing Kit, completed with many items for cleaning and maintaining his Nimbus 2000 racing broom, as well as a book on maintaining his broom. Neville had sent him a book about rare and unknown herbs, and medicinal potions made with them. And Ginny had sent him a simple necklace with an emblem that was shaped like a shield with two arrows crossing over it. Apparently, it was an emblem that was on the headdress of Hemsut, the Egyptian goddess of fate and protection. The wizard merchant she had gotten it from said that the necklace was supposed to help protect those who wore it. Whether or not that was true, it was still a thoughtful gift, and one that Harry appreciated, considering what he had been through lately.

His last present had been from Hagrid, the Groundskeeper of Hogwarts. The giant of a man, whom Harry swore had giant blood in him, had sent Harry a book, with a note saying he thought it might be useful for this coming school year. The book was _The Monster Book of Monsters_. As it turned out, the book was actually sentient, or was at least charmed to be sentient. As soon as Harry had unwrapped it, the book tried to snap his hand off. Thankfully, Travis and Gareth had trapped it when it had gone scuttling after Travis's fox familiar, Ghrian. The young fox had barked and yipped at it, and even tried jumping on it after it had been pinned.

As Harry found out, in a second note from Hagrid inside the wrapping paper, the way to calm the book down so you could open it was by stroking the spine. After Harry did that, the book calmed down and instantly fell open. Unfortunately, it went back to be sentient and hostile when it was closed, so Harry was forced to bind it with a belt, until he found a way to permanently calm it down. Despite the problems, Harry was grateful for the gift, especially when he received his letter from Hogwarts, stating what books and supplies he would need. On the list was _The Monster Book of Monster_, so Harry wouldn't need to purchase one from Diagon Alley.

Harry was pulled from his reminiscing as the door opened and his adoptive father, Gareth Wallace, beckoned for him to enter the Chamber of the Elders. The red cloaked master's face was neutral as Harry entered, trying not to fidget with his blue acolyte cloak. He had received the summons to the Elder's Chambers that morning after breakfast. Despite reassurances from his father and his mother Marian, Harry was still really nervous.

Inside, the five white cloaked Elders solemnly watched as Harry entered and dropped to one knee before them, head bowed. They were silent for several moments, before one of the three human Elders, Elder Kelly, spoke. "Acolyte Potter. I'm sure you are wondering why you were brought here?"

Harry just kept his head bowed, waiting for the Elder to continue. Elder Kelly soon did so. "Your father and mentor, Master Wallace, informed us of your actions towards the end of the school term at Hogwarts. You fought against a basilisk in one on one combat, and not only survived, but emerged victorious, even if you won without slaying the basilisk. This is a feat of which few can boast, due to the lethal power and abilities the basilisk has."

At this point, the only Goblin Elder of the Sanctuary, Elder Garinok, spoke up. "We were also informed how you did all this to save a fellow schoolmate. And that in the process of fighting the basilisk, you not only acquired but bonded with the ancient sword of Godric Gryffindor. It is not often that goblin crafted weapons will actively choose a new wielder after their previous one has perished."

The Centaur Elder, Elder Rioen, now took over. "We have been considering your actions for some time, Acolyte Potter. And we have also been discussing your actions at the end of the previous school year, when you led your friends to defend the Philosopher's Stone crafted by Nicolas Flamel. We were told you acted with great heroism and determination."

Elder Kelly now spoke again. "Having considered all these things, we have made a decision. One that, while not unusual, has also not been made often. Acolyte Potter, in recognition of your obvious skill, but also in recognition of your honor, bravery, and willingness to fight for others, and sacrifice your own well being for the protection and betterment of others, we hereby award you the rank of Disciple."

Harry's eyes widened at that, as he slowly looked up. Acolyte's usually only achieved the rank of Disciple after undergoing a rigorous examination. Most Acoylte's took four or five years to become a Disciple, though it hadn't been unheard of for some to do it in two or three years.

However, there had been some cases where Acolyte's had been raised in rank based on decisions by the Elders. These events were very rare though.

Harry trembled slightly, as he bowed his head again. "Elders, I do not mean to offend but…..do you really think I'm ready?" He asked.

Elder Kelly chuckled. "Ahhhh my boy, you are too doubtful of your own accomplishments and skill. I can assure you, we've given this much thought. You have exhibited the skills, and more importantly the qualities we look for in our Disciples. Yes, you are ready."

Harry just nodded. "By your will then," he said.

Gareth smiled as he approached Harry, who slowly stood and removed the blue cloak he wore. Gareth slowly handed him the black Battle Mage cloak of the Disciple Rank. Unlike the blue cloak, which had lighter blue trim along the edges, this cloak was completely onyx black. Harry slowly wrapped the cloak around his shoulders, buckling it into place, before kneeling again, bowing his head. "Thank you Elders."

Elder Rioen spoke again. "Be mindful though, Disciple Potter. Your new rank means new responsibilities. While we will not interfere with your attendance of Hogwarts, we will possibly ask you to return here during your mid year holidays to perform missions that may arise."

"I understand and will not fail you, Elders," Harry said.

Elder Kelly nodded. "We have some additional news for you, Disciple Potter. A letter recently arrived here from the Ministry of Magic, informing us of grave news that concerns you. It seems that a dangerous criminal known as Sirius Black escaped from the Ministry Prison known as Azkaban. While we do not have the full details, we were informed that Sirius Black is a dangerous criminal, and supported of the Dark Lord Voldemort."

Harry tensed at hearing this. "Do they believe he will come after me?" He asked.

Elder Kelly nodded. "Sadly, yes. They are under the impression that Black will target you for the fall of his Master. They've assured us that they are taking precautions to ensure your safety while at Hogwarts. We felt it prudent to warn you of the potential danger, so you would be cautious in your time at Hogwarts. We would also ask Master Wallace to inform his son, Acolyte Travis, who will be attending again, yes?"

Gareth nodded. "Of course Elders. I'm sure my son will be eager to watch out for his big brother."

Elder Kelly nodded. "Very well then. That is all."

Both Gareth and Harry bowed to the Elders and left. Almost as soon as the doors were closed behind them, Harry nearly collapsed. Gareth grinned as he moved next to Harry, gripping his shoulder. "Well how about that son? Barely two years after becoming an Acolyte and now you're already a Disciple! Keep this up and you'll be a Master in no time."

Harry just shuddered a bit. "I think I can take some time before that dad. I'm not ready to start training others like you do."

Gareth chuckled. "Who knows son. You may find you like it," Gareth said, as they headed back to their apartment within the Sanctuary. Harry just weakly smiled.

The two of them arrived in the Wallace apartment in the Sanctuary. There they found Marian and Travis, who were waiting for them. Marian smiled at her adoptive son, seeing his new black cloak. "Well done Harry," she said, hugging him.

Harry smiled as he hugged his mom, while Travis grinned. "Don't get too comfy older brother. I'll be joining you soon enough."

Harry chuckled. "Take your time Travis. Take your time."

Gareth smiled at his sons. "You two ready to get going? We need to get shopping done for this coming school year," he said.

A couple days ago, two letters had arrived from Hogwarts for Harry and Travis. Each contained lists of what they would need for their next school year, and their Final Exam grades. Travis, despite not having attended for most of the year, had been allowed to take the graduation exams after spending the rest of the school year with tutors. He had passed with flying colors.

The four of them were now gathering to go to Diagon Alley and get the supplies Harry and Travis would need. Mostly, they would require a few new spell books and potion items. Harry required two new course books, for his Care for Magical Creatures class, and Ancient Runes. Thankfully, Hagrid had solved the first book requirement for him.

The four of them headed to the Floo chamber within the Sanctuary. After making their presence known to the Wizarding World, the Battle Mages had enjoyed some of the innovations of their Wizard brethren. The Flood Powder had become a major hit, since it now allowed the Battle mages easy access to not only other magical areas of England and Scotland. The other Sanctuaries were slowly adapting as well, adding their own Floo Rooms. However, to protect their Sanctuaries, each Floo room as carefully guarded by a series of magical wards created by runes placed into the walls and door. Also, at least one master and three disciples were always on hand to assist people with the Floo's, and act as the initial line of defense against any sudden invaders.

Now, the family of four disappeared through the Floo, and appeared in Gringotts. This had been their usual destination the last two years when they had t travel to Diagon Alley, so that they could get gold easily. Today though, they didn't really need money, since they had enough on hand for what they would need. One of the benefits of having two children so close in age was they could pass the books Harry had used down to Travis.

So, the family of four headed out into the busy shopping area that was Diagon Alley. The Alley was crowded with witches and wizards, as well as a few other magical species that had business there. There were lots of people happily chatting with each other over their daily business. However, the Alley also had a slight feeling of anxiousness to it. And the reason why could be explained by numerous pictures placed up on almost every building. They were all wanted posters, featuring the same picture of the wanted criminal in question. Sirius Black was a man with pale skin, a sunken face and long tatty black-brown hair that hung to his shoulders. His eyes were dark, and since it was a Wizarding picture and thus moved, the eyes would occasionally blink. All in all, the man almost looked like some horrible vampire.

But the Wallace family didn't let the pictures bother them. They quietly went about their business, buying up supplies Harry and Travis needed. A clerk working at Flourish and Blotts had nearly fainted in delight when he had gone to get Harry a copy of _The Monster Book of Monsters_ and Harry told him he already had a copy. Sadly though, the clerk didn't have any information on how to keep the things calm all the time, so Harry would wait till he could talk to Hagrid.

As they were leaving the bookstore, Harry saw a crowd gathering around Quality Quidditch Supplies, a store that catered to Quidditch players and fans alike, as well as also offering a variety of state of the art brooms. Curious, he headed over that way, and tried to find out what the group was gathered for. When he was able to move up enough to see, his eyes widened.

There on a podium lay a broomstick. But it was unlike any Harry had seen before. The handle was smooth and sleek, and the twigs of the brush were straight and perfectly aligned, giving the broom an incredibly aerodynamic appearance. It practically screamed speed. Harry's eyes moved from the broom to the sign that informed curious customers what this beautiful broomstick was:

_**The Firebolt**_

Harry grinned as he read the information below the broomstick's title. The broom had been carefully crafted for the ultimate combination of speed and handling, making it the ultimate mount for any Quidditch Player. Capable of reaching 150 miles an hour in ten seconds, and then almost braking and turning on a knut.

Harry sighed as he moved away. It was the most beautiful broomstick he had ever seen. But he didn't actually need it. His Nimbus 2000, a broomstick he had been given after joining the Gryffindor Quidditch in his first year, was still a very good broom that had yet to let him down during a match. Still, it might not be a bad idea to have a spare broom. He smiled as he followed his family. It was something to think about, he finally decided as they entered an Apothecary shop to get potion supplies.

Having concluded their business, the group started to head towards the Leaky Cauldron, the tavern like bar that acted as an entranceway between muggle London and Diagon Alley. Harry was moving aside to let a group of gossiping witches pass when he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. It felt like something was watching him. Or someone. He quickly turned, scanning the area. His eyes stopped on a big black dog that was sitting in a small side alley. The dog was massive, almost bear like. It seemed to be thin, which wasn't odd since it was probably a stray. Yet it wasn't really acting like a normal dog. It wasn't panting, it wasn't barking or scratching. It was just sitting there, watching him with its dark eyes.

Harry just stared at the dog, before another group of people passed between them. When they cleared, the large canine was gone. Harry blinked at that, before shaking his head and turning to follow his family. Unaware of the now human eyes watching him from the shadows deeper in the side alley.

_Platform 9 and 3/4__th__'s September 1__st_

Smoke billowed from the scarlet steam engine, as it sat waiting to take the students to Hogwarts. The platform was bustling with families saying goodbye to their children, and various familiars hooting, meowing, and croaking.

Harry was currently scanning the crowd for his friends, while Travis was busy chatting with one of his friends who had found him almost immediately after he had entered the platform. Colin Creevy was a muggleborn student who was in Gryffindor, like Harry and Travis. The now Second Year had followed Harry around during the previous year, being in awe of The-Boy-Who-Lived. He had made friends with Travis, but then Travis had returned home after his humiliation and Colin had ended up petrified due to a basilisk.

Eventually, Harry grinned as he saw the bushy brown hair of his friend Hermione, and headed that way. He grinned as he tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to yelp and whirl around. "Harry!" she shouted, hugging him, then playfully smacking his arm. "You shouldn't scare me like that!"

Harry just chuckled. "I would think you'd be more aware of your surroundings, especially after Tutella got the drop on you last year," he said, referring to when the basilisk, whom they now knew was named Tutella, managed to surprise and petrify both Hermione and a Ravenclaw Prefect named Penelope Clearwater.

Hermione just pouted, before smiling. "It's good to see you again," she said with a smile.

Harry just grinned. "You too. Have you seen Neville or Ginny around here?"

Hermione nodded. "Neville's actually looking for a compartment for us. I haven't seen Ginny yet though. Her family may not have arrived."

Harry just grinned. "Well I can't wait to hear everything you three have been up to. I've got a story or two to share myself."

Hermione smiled. "Me too. Oh but first, I want you to meet someone!" She said, as she knelt down to a basket at her feet, and opened it. She pulled out a ginger furred cat with an oddly squashed face and bandy legs. "Harry, meet Crookshanks. I got him at Diagon Alley."

Harry smiled at the cat, which looked grumpy. Probably because he had been sleeping in his basket. "Hello there Crookshanks," he said, gently petting the cat's head. It seemed to relent a bit, tilting its head to get more of his hand. He just smiled as Hermione gently put the cat back into its basket.

Eventually, they were joined by a round faced boy with black hair, who grinned as he saw Harry. 'Harry! Good to see you again mate!" He said, grabbing Harry's hand and shaking it. Harry grinned at his male best friend.

"Good to see you too Neville. Got quite a grip there. Still boxing?" Harry asked.

Neville nodded. "My great uncle is actually thinking of having me enter some fights next summer. He thinks I have a real shot at making a name for myself," he said with a grin. "Anyways, I managed to save us a compartment at the end of the train. We'll have to share it with an adult though. I think he might be the new Defense Teacher."

"Well hopefully he'll be better then Lockhart. Or who am I kidding, anyone's better then Lockhart," Harry said with a grin. Neville chuckled while Hermione tried not to laugh. Their previous Defense Against Dark Arts teacher had been a wizard named Gilderoy Lockhart, famous for his numerous books on his various adventures and the creatures he had defeated. However, the man in the books and the man in person were utterly different people, as the Lockhart outside the books was practically incompetent.

The truth had eventually come out at the end of the year though. When Harry had gone to face the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, Lockhart had followed, hoping to earn some extra glory. Instead, he ended up being ripped in half and eaten, ending his career. A search of his belongings revealed a personal memoir revealing the whole truth about his career, and leading to him being publically discredited and humiliated. If Harry remembered correctly, there had been massive bonfires across Magical England, upon which Lockhart's books had been burned.

Harry just chuckled, as he shook his head. "Well I'll meet you two there. I'm going to go say goodbye to my parents and make one final sweep for Ginny."

His two friends nodded and started to head towards the back of the train, while Harry returned to his parents. Travis was already gone, apparently going to join Colin for the train ride.

Marian smiled as she hugged her older son. "Now you take care Harry, and for goodness sake, try to stay out of trouble! You're going to give me grey hairs."

Harry smiled up at her. "I'll try mom, but trouble just keeps finding me it seems," he said with a grin. He turned to his dad, and hugged him.

Gareth grinned as he patted his son's back. "We'll see you for Christmas son. Take care," he said.

Harry nodded, as he grabbed up his trunk and the cages for Blaze and Hedwig. "I'll see you both for Christmas!" he shouted, as he headed towards the back of the train.

He was starting to make his way back there, when he spotted a flash of red exited the portal between the Platform and the Muggle World. He grinned as he saw a twelve year old girl with long red hair stumble a bit, before heading towards her. "Ginny!" He called with a grin.

Ginny looked up, and blinked, before smiling shyly. "H-Harry! Hi!" She said, moving to meet him.

Ginny Weasley came from a huge family. She had six brothers, two of which were already out in the world. The other four were still in Hogwarts.

And speaking of which, said four brothers were emerging from the portal now. The first was the second youngest Weasley child, Ron Weasley. Ron and Harry had gotten off to a bad start the first train ride to Hogwarts when they were eleven. Ever since Ron had held a grudge against Harry, convinced he was just an attention seeking prat. However, after Harry had rescued Ginny at the end of last year, Ron's opinion had changed of him. They had managed a truce, though they still weren't friends.

Behind Ron were the twins Fred and George. Fred and George were notorious pranksters, now entering their Fifth Year of Hogwarts. Each was identical in practically every way. They even finished each other's sentences.

The last was Percy, who like Ron, was tall and lanky. He also had horn-rimmed glasses, and had a badge pinned to his shirt with the letters HB on it.

Behind them came their parents. Mrs. Weasley, who was short and stout, and Mr. Weasley, who was balding, wore glasses, and was somewhat thin. Like their children, both had red hair.

Mrs. Weasley's face lit up when she saw Harry, and she immediately came over. "Harry, it's so good to see you again!"

Harry smiled back. "It's wonderful to see you too Mrs. Weasley. My mother wanted me to thank you again for inviting us to that get together last week, after you all returned from Egypt."

Mrs. Weasley smiled. "Oh it was absolutely no trouble at all. I was just glad to have someone to gossip with. Being out in the country like I am, it gets a little lonely."

Harry smiled, before the train whistle blew, signaling the train was almost ready to go. Harry nodded. "Well it was great seeing you again," he said with a smile, before turning to Ginny. "Hermione and Neville got a compartment towards the back of the train, if you'd like to join us," he said.

Ginny smiled. "That'd be great," she said, only to blush when Fred and George made some catcalls. Mrs. Weasley immediately began to reprimand them, as Harry led Ginny towards the back of the train.

Ginny shyly glanced at Harry. She was still a bit…..overwhelmed by his presence. Ever since she was old enough to understand that Harry was responsible for defeating Voldemort, she had a crush on him. In her mind, he was a hero, a shining prince on a white steed, off to slay the dragon and rescue the princess. Her brothers Fred and George had told her all about him in the summer vacation before her First Year at Hogwarts. In a way, he had almost seemed like the hero she had envisioned.

But then she actually met Harry, and realized he wasn't quite what she thought. He was heroic and noble, given his attempt to thwart Quirrell from stealing the Philosopher's Stone and him risking his life to save her. But he wasn't some legend inspiring hero. She had found that he was a normal person, behind the legends. He laughed, he joked, and he got angry. And now, she was getting to know this new Harry, the real Harry Potter. Of course, him saving her life did still make her shy around him. After all, it's not every day you have someone risk life and limb to save you.

They soon arrived at the back of the train and got on, glancing into the compartments for Hermione and Neville. They eventually found them in a compartment with a sleeping figure next to the window. The two of them entered and sat down as the train started rolling.

Harry glanced at the figure. "So any idea who he is?" He asked quietly.

Hermione pointed to a battered briefcase in the storage racks above the seats. Stenciled on it in peeling gold letters was _Professor R. J. Lupin_.

Harry nodded at that. "So he must be the new DADA teacher. You think he's okay?"

Professor Lupin did seem rather thin and pale. His hair was brown, but seemed touched with quite a bit of gray. His robes were somewhat shabby.

Neville sighed. "I hope he'll be up to the task. He looks like even one small push will knock him out or something."

Harry smiled. "Well at least we know he'll be better then Lockhart. Now c'mon, I want to hear all about your guys' summers," he said eagerly.

They grinned as each of them began to share their tales. Hermione had visited quite a few places in France with her family, and added them to a History of Magic report they had been assigned for homework, on Ancient Witch Burnings. Neville had spent quality time with his extended family, fishing, picnicking, and training in boxing. And Ginny's family, as stated in the newspaper, had visited Egypt, and her older brother Bill. Bill worked as a Curse Breaker for Gringotts, dealing with wards and protections put upon ancient tombs. The Weasley's had toured a few of those tombs, though Mrs. Weasley had refused to let Ginny into the last one, which contained skeletal remains of tomb robbers who had been cursed to grow extra heads and limbs before dying.

Harry told them all about being promoted to Disciple in the Battle Mages, which was the highlight of his summer.

As the city and villages gave way to rolling hills, talk turned towards the escaped criminal.

"The Elders told me what the Ministry told them," Harry told his friends. "That Sirius Black apparently was a supporter of Voldemort. And that he might be coming after me."

Ginny shuddered at hearing Voldemort's name, while Hermione and Neville didn't react as much. They were use to it at this point.

"It was horrible, what he did," Neville said. "My Gran told me about it when I was old enough. He blew up twelve muggles and a wizard, not even a day after Voldemort failed to kill you. And then he just stood there and laughed. Laughed amongst all that carnage he had caused."

Ginny shuddered a bit. "How can a man be so cruel," she whispered, looking at the others.

Harry shook his head. "I don't know Ginny. Sometimes, there's just no understanding some people."

Hermione shook her head. "Let's talk about something else, please. How about Hogsmeade? Are you two excited to visit it?" She asked Harry and Neville as she let Crookshanks out of his basket, since he had been meowing from inside it. The ginger cat leapt out, looked around, and promptly curled up on Hermione's lap. Ginny gasped happily, petting Crookshanks, who looked smug at the attention he was receiving.

Neville nodded, grinning, while Harry blinked. "What are you talking about Hermione?"

Hermione blinked. "In our letters from the school. We got a permission slip for our parents to sign. Third Years and above get to visit Hogsmeade on certain weekends, if our parents sign a permission slip. Didn't you get one?"

Harry slowly shook his head. "No….I didn't," he said quietly. He sat back, looking down a bit. "You don't think it's because of Black, do you? That they don't want me leaving the castle?"

Hermione bit her lip. "Maybe….but that seems totally unfair. We should talk to McGonagall about this when we get to the school."

Harry just nodded a bit, feeling a little depressed. "Y-Yeah….I guess so."

It was at that moment, that a distraction appeared at the door, in the form of a blonde haired boy with two massive gorilla like boys behind him. "So, we find Potter and his entourage. And look, you picked yourself up the Weaslette. I guess you could stoop lower, Potter," Draco Malfoy sneered.

Harry growled as he stood up. Draco Malfoy had been a constant nuisance to Harry the past two years, ever since Harry had stopped him and his minions from beating up Ron on the first train ride. Draco Malfoy came from a rich 'pure blood' Wizarding family, and so he automatically felt he was superior to all others around him. It didn't help that his father encouraged that belief. The two massive boys behind him were Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe. The both of them were absolute idiots, but provided Draco with all the muscle he needed. Except when it came to dealing with Harry and his friends.

Harry glared at Draco. "You know, I would think that after two years of getting nothing but pain and humiliation, you would have learned not to bother me and my friends Draco. But then again, you'd have to pay someone to drill that lesson into your head, wouldn't you?"

Draco sneered at Harry. "I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you, Potter. Not with Sirius Black out to get you. I'll bet you'll just be dying to go after him, won't you?"

Harry snorted. "Why on Earth would I want to go after a madman trying to kill me?"

Draco gave off an evil grin. "Oh? I guess you're too much of a coward then, to get revenge on black for what he did."

Harry's eyes narrowed at that. "What are you talking about?"

Draco just chuckled as he turned to leave. "I guess the mighty Harry Potter doesn't know everything," he said as he left.

Harry growled as he slammed the door shut, causing the still sleeping Lupin to snort in his sleep. Harry sat down, glaring at the floor, before looking up. "What did he mean by that? What did Sirius Black do that would make me want to get revenge on him?"

They all shrugged, as Ginny moved next to him, and slowly put a hand on his shoulder. "I bet he's just trying to get under your skin Harry. You shouldn't let him."

Harry let out a shuddering breath, and nodded. "Right. Thanks Ginny," he said, giving her a smile. She smiled back at him, blushing a little.

The train continued on its way to Hogwarts, as the sun slowly began to set. As it started to get late, Harry grumbled a bit, his stomach rumbling. "I hope we're almost there," he said.

As if hearing his words, the train began to slow down. Harry grinned, only to blink when he saw Hermione's face, which was confused. "We can't be there yet," she said.

The train screeched to a halt in the middle of the tracks, and then all the lanterns that illuminated the cars went out, leaving the train in pitch black. Harry tensed, sensing something was wrong. Slowly he got up, drawing his wand. Neville had moved to the window and was peering through it.

"There are…some type of shadows out there. I can't make them out but…they're getting on the train," he said.

Harry gripped his wand. "I don't like this," he said.

At that moment, a gruff voice echoed from behind him. "All of you, be still," the voice said.

Harry turned in time to see what look like a ball of fire being held in the hands of Professor Lupin. The tired man stood up. "I'll handle this. Please sit down," he told Harry.

Harry nodded and moved to sit down, but was stopped by a sudden cold sensation filling his body. He stiffened, and turned as he heard the door open behind him. Before him, illuminated by Lupin's flames, was a massive shadowy figure in a dark cloak. Where its face would be was nothing but shadow, hid by its hood.

Harry slowly looked down, and nearly gagged as he saw what looked like a hand sticking out of the cloak. It was corpse like, but slimy, as if it belonged to that of a drowned body. The figure seemed to sense Harry was seeing its hand, as it twitched and the hand disappeared into its robes.

Lupin held up his wand at the figure. "Leave now. Sirius Black isn't here," he said.

The figure just watched him, before a sucking, rattling noise, like something take a long wheezing breath, could be heard. Harry felt his body going rigid, and his legs wobbling, like he was going to collapse. Struggling, he raised a hand, whispering an incantation to create a fireball. The flames appeared around his hand, and he felt marginally better.

The figure seemed to instantly lock onto Harry, its hood staring at the flames. And then a dark sinister voice echoed through Harry's head. "_**Battle Mage**_," the voice echoed, before the effects from before was doubled. The flames in Harry's hand went out, as he felt himself falling, his body going cold. His last conscious thought was hearing a woman scream, then nothing.

* * *

**MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! EVIL CLIFFHANGER! Oh who am I kidding, it's no cliffhanger. Everyone knows what will happen next. *Sad face***

**So, I finally finished this chapter. Took me a while to do it. Not sure why. *Shrugs***

**So, welcome to the Third Year of Harry Potter, battle Mage of Hogwarts! And I hope you all enjoy!**

**Just a quick note. Yes I purposefully had it so Harry didn't receive a Hogsmeade permission slip. And I'll explain why in the next chapter. So just sit down and enjoy.**

**And yes, I know we never heard Dementor's speak in the movie or books, but:**

**1. They have to communicate somehow and**

**2. This is fanfiction so I can do what I want.**

**So, until next chapter then! Please read and review!**


	2. An Ancient Gift

**Welcome all to the second chapter of Year 3 of Battle Mage of Hogwarts!**

**I'm really surprised how many people actually liked that I had the Dementor talk. Rest assured, you'll all be finding out why the Dementor suddenly concentrated so heavily on Harry there. However, I can't guarantee you'll get the whole story this chapter. I might keep a secret or two for later in the story. *Mysterious grin***

**For now, let's get what everyone wants to see! Which is the next chapter.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. It is the property of J. K. Rowling. If I did own Harry Potter, it probably would look something like what I'm writing here on fanfiction.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

**An Ancient Gift**

Harry Potter groaned, as he felt vibrations underneath him. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking as he saw the illuminated compartment. He also saw the worried expressions of his friends Hermione and Neville.

"Harry, you're awake!" Hermione said, hugging him. She and Neville helped him to sit up, as Harry slowly held his head.

"What…what happened?" Harry groaned, before his eyes widened as he remembered the tall dark figure and the sinister voice in his head. And he remembered hearing a woman scream. He immediately looked around frantically. "Is everyone okay? Who screamed?" He said.

"No one screamed Harry," Neville said. "Though Ginny came close. She was shaking like a leaf the whole time that thing was in here," he said.

Harry glanced at Ginny, who was huddled in her seat still. The poor girl was trembling fearfully, though she looked relieved that Harry was alright.

They were all startled by a snapping noise, as Professor Lupin was breaking a large chocolate bar apart. He began handing pieces to each of them. "Here, eat this," he told them. "It helps relieve the effects of a Dementor."

They all did so immediately, though Harry decided to ask a question first. "You said that thing was a Dementor? What's a Dementor?" he asked the only adult in the compartment.

Remus Lupin sighed as he looked at Harry. "A very dark, soulless creature. They are employed by the Ministry of Magic to act as guards for the Wizarding Prison of Azkaban. That Dementor was searching the train for Sirius Black. Though why it seemed to focus on you I don't know. I've never heard of one doing that before. Not on someone who is innocent."

Harry's eyes widened as a thought came to him. "My brother! They might have done the same to him! I need to go check on him!" He said, as he struggled to get up, only to be stopped by Neville.

"You're in no condition Harry. I'll go check on Travis," he said, as he got up.

"I'll accompany you. I need to go talk to the conductor anyways," Lupin said, as he followed Neville out of the room. Harry slumped into one of the seats. The chocolate had warmed him up and left him feeling better. But he was worried about Travis. He looked at the two girls. "What happened? After I fainted? Did anyone else faint?" He asked.

Ginny shook her head. "N-No…I came close though. I kept seeing flashes of…The Chamber," she said.

Hermione nodded. "I kept experiencing all my worst memories. Though it lessened when it focused on you. After you fainted, Professor Lupin uttered a spell I couldn't hear, and shot a silvery cloud of magic. The Dementor retreated instantly."

Harry nodded quietly, looking down a bit. He was concerned about why the Dementor had targeted him in particular. He remembered hearing that sinister voice in his head, almost spitting out the word Battle Mage. Was that the reason why? Would that mean Travis would be targeted too?

His thoughts turned towards why he had fainted. Was the Dementor that powerful? Or was it for some other reason? He just quietly looked down.

Neville soon arrived. "Travis is alright. He was a little shaken, but it seems that the Dementor didn't bother him."

Harry just nodded numbly. He was glad his little brother was okay. It seemed that either he in particular had drawn the attention of the Dementor, or the Dementor hadn't realized Travis was a battle mage. Either way, that was good news.

A few minutes later Professor Lupin arrived and smiled at them. "The conductor says we're almost to Hogwarts. You should all get ready," he said, as he stepped out to give them some privacy. Harry and Neville stepped out too, letting Hermione and Ginny change. After they were done, the boys did as well.

A few minutes later, the train came to a second stop, this time at the Hogsmeade station. The students onboard began to pile out onto the platform, where they found themselves being pelted by sheets of freezing rain. Harry shivered at the feeling as it felt all too similar to what he had experienced at the hands of the Dementor.

His spirits were lifted a bit when he heard a familiar deep and gruff voice calling out. "First years this way! C'mon first years! This way!" Harry grinned as he saw his giant of a friend, Rubeus Hagrid. Hagrid was the groundskeeper at Hogwarts. Standing impressively at probably twelve or more feet tall, the massive man and Harry had become good friends.

Hagrid grinned and waved at them, before escorting the first year students away. It was his job to escort the first years down to the lake, where they would ride a series of boats across the great lake that was on the grounds of Hogwarts. The rest of the students would ride up to the castle in carriages there were either pulled by some type of invisible horse, or were propelled entirely by magic. Harry wasn't sure which honestly.

Harry grunted as he pulled himself up into one of the carriages, then helped Ginny and Hermione in. Neville climbed in last, and shut the door. And with that, the carriage began to trundle forward through the forest.

As they approached the gates of Hogwarts though, Harry was in for a rather nasty surprise. Flanking either side of the large metal gate was a pair of Dementors. He shuddered, as he felt the icy feeling seize him again. It soon passed as they left the Dementors behind, but it still left Harry feeling cold and weak.

His friends glanced at him, worried. Harry had always been the strong one of the group. He was the one who fought an animated sand statue warrior, and battled Quirrell in their first year to protect the Philosopher's Stone. And it was he who had charged headlong into a battle against a giant basilisk and a teenage Voldemort just their previous year. To see him so weak and shaken was disconcerting to say the least. Ginny, having the seat next to Harry, gently touched his shoulder. He glanced at her and smiled, grateful for the concern and comfort.

Soon the carriage pulled to a stop in front of the castle, and the quartet piled out, joining the throng of students heading up into the castle. Harry had barely set foot in the Entrance Hall though when he heard a stern female voice call out his name.

Professor Minerva McGonagall swept over to the group. "Mr. Potter, I need you to follow me please," she said somewhat stiffly, though one could see the hint of concern in her eyes. Harry blinked but nodded, turning to his friends.

"Save me a seat. I'll be back in a bit." His friends nodded as he turned and followed the Professor, while some of the students began talking.

McGonagall led him to her office, and opened the door. "Please sit down Mr. Potter," she said.

As Harry did so, McGonagall moved over to her desk. But before she could sit down, Madame Pomfrey, the school's nurse walked in. "I came as soon as I could Minerva. Who was affected?" She asked, only to stop when she saw Harry. "Mr. Potter, why am I not surprised. What was it this time?" she asked, heading to check on him.

Harry blinked. "W-What?" he asked, confused.

McGonagall sighed quietly. "Professor Lupin sent a message ahead, about what happened on the train," she explained to Harry, before turning to Pomfrey. "It was a Dementor. Remus said it focused on Harry for some reason, made him faint. Can you check him for any side effects?"

Pomfrey nodded. "Of course. Tell me Mr. Potter, did you have any chocolate?" she asked as she pulled out her wand and began to use some spells to check up on him.

Harry nodded. "Yes I did, Madame Pomfrey. Professor Lupin gave me some, as well as the others who were in my compartment."

She seemed impressed at that. "Finally, a DA teacher who knows his remedies," she said, before finishing up. "Everything seems fine. I would suggest you take it easy for a day or two, alright?"

Harry nodded quietly as McGonagall smiled. "Thank you Poppy. You may go now."

Madame Pomfrey gave a nod of understanding a left, as McGonagall sighed. "Well it's good to know you're alright Harry. However, I think that for safeties sake, you might need to cancel your morning training session. Or at least stay closer to the castle when you do it. Perhaps I should talk Professor Dumbledore into making some type of training area for you."

Harry nodded quietly. "Of course Professor….ummm….may I ask a question?" When the Transfiguration Professor nodded, Harry continued. "Hermione…mentioned something about a Hogsmeade permission slip. And I didn't get one," he said. "Was it a mistake?"

Professor McGonagall looked uneasily. "Ahhh. That. Well, in truth Harry, we felt it wasn't prudent to let you go to Hogsmeade. At least…not while Sirius Black is on the loose," she said.

Harry's eyes widened. "I see," he said. "Do you think he would sneak into Hogsmeade?"

"It is possible Harry. We are just taking precautions, all things considered. However, if he's captured, or if he's sighted outside of England, then perhaps we can reconsider allowing you to go to Hogsmeade."

Harry nodded. "I understand. Thank you Professor, for clearing that up," he said as he stood up. "Besides, after what happened on the train, I am a little concerned about those…Dementors," he said.

McGonagall nodded. "As would I, if what happened to you had happened to me. We've never seen a Dementor act that way before. I would suggest sending a letter to your parents, seeing if they might have any idea."

Harry nodded. "I will. Thank you Professor."

McGonagall gave a small smile. "Now, I think I've kept you here long enough. Let us go and join the others for the Feast."

Harry grinned as they headed off. They arrived in the Great Hall in time to see Professor Sprout take away the Sorting Hat. Harry felt a little disappointed at missing the Sorting, but he just smiled as he joined his friends. Instantly Hermione leaned over.

"What was that about Harry?" She asked worriedly.

"She was just checking on me, to make sure I was alright. After the incident on the train," he said. "I also found out why I didn't get a Hogsmeade slip. They didn't think it was safe for me to leave the castle walls, with Sirius Black on the loose."

Hermione, Neville, and Ginny nodded at that, as Dumbledore stood, drawing everyone's attention.

"Welcome, everyone, to another year here at Hogwarts!" He said with a smile. "Before we become befuddled with the excellent food of the Welcoming Feast, a few important announcements. First off, as I'm sure you are all aware, our school is currently playing host to a number of the ministry's Dementors from Azkaban." Dumbeldore's smile tightened a bit as his voice hardened, making Harry blink. He had seen Dumbledore angry only twice in his life. Apparently the Dementor's had led to Harry seeing Dumbledore's anger and frustration a third time.

"They have been posted at all the entrances to the school, and will be patrolling the outer grounds of the school. They will not be fooled by disguises, tricks, or even Invisibility Cloaks, and they will not be merciful to those who they capture out of bounds. So please, do not give them a reason to harm you. I look to our prefects, and the new Head Boy and Girl to keep everyone safe."

Several seats away from Harry, Percy puffed his chest out, his Head Boy badge gleaming in the candle light. Dumbledore's twinkling smile soon returned.

"On a much happier note, I am pleased to welcome two new staff members! First off, please welcome our new defense Against Dark Arts teacher, Professor Remus J. Lupin!" He said, as he began to clap. There was a polite amount of applause, as Lupin nodded his head. The strongest though came from Harry and his friends, who had seen their new teacher in action. Harry grinned as he looked at the Professor, before blinking as he caught sight of another Professor at the table; Professor Severus Snape, the Potions Teacher and head of the Slytherin House.

The man had sallow skin and greasy black hair, and had been one of the banes of the students outside Slytherin House. He had been favoring his house ever since he had become the head of it. That is until last year, when two of his House had publically humiliated and traumatized Travis. Shaken to his core due to his own past in bullying, Snape had made a change for the better. Now though, the man was uneasily looking at Lupin, making Harry blink in confusion. Was there some type of past there?

His attention was drawn back to Dumbledore, who was speaking again. "Our second new Professor will be replacing our own Professor Kettleburn, who decided to retire to enjoy his time with his remaining limbs. So please give a warm welcome to our new Care for magical Creatures, Professor Rubeus Hagrid!"

It was silent for a second, before the Gryffindor table exploded into cheers, while the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw houses clapped enthusiastically. Hagrid grinned while his eyes watered at that. Hagrid had been wrongfully accused of opening Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets in his Third Year, and unleashing a monster that had petrified several students and killed one of them. However, his name had been cleared last year by Harry. Being allowed to teach the students of Hogwarts, especially on a subject he was very familiar with and greatly enjoyed, was something Hagrid truly deserved.

Dumbledore smiled, as the cheering and clapping eventually died down. "Now, I think it is time we enjoyed this magnificent feast!"

With that, the food appeared. Harry smiled as he began to dig in, his good mood returning. Even with the Dementors and the psycho killer on the loose, it was good to be back.

Nearby, Travis was eating and talking quietly with Colin. The young battle mage had to admit, he was still nervous about being here. It didn't help that some people had been whispering and pointing at him on the train and here in the school. But so far, it hadn't been that bad. As he fed a piece of turkey to Ghrian, who was on his lap, he happened to glance up in time to see a pair of brown eyes watching him from the Slytherin table. He stiffened as he recognized the owner of said eyes, who hurriedly looked away. His gaze narrowed as he glared at them for a bit, before going back to eating.

At the Slytherin table, Astoria Greengrass looked down, feeling sad and guilty. She had seen the boy who she had inadvertently caused such utter humiliation and torment last year. And she had felt his glare when she looked away. It hurt a bit, especially since she remembered that he had come to her, offering friendship. And in return, she had pretty much screwed him over. She quietly looked down at her plate, picking at her food, until her sister nudged her gently with an elbow.

"What's wrong sis?" Daphne Greengrass asked. Astoria shook her head.

"It's nothing Daphne. Don't worry," she said, as she started to eat.

Daphne sighed as she looked at her little sister. "You know…you could always try apologizing to him," she said quietly. "It would at least help get rid of your guilt."

Astoria chuckled sadly. "Yeah, I can see it now. 'I'm sorry for basically handing you over to be utterly humiliated. Please forgive me'." She looked down at her food. "It would just be better if I stay away from him. He would never accept my apology."

Daphne shook her head. "Your choice," she said, as she went back to eating.

The feast continued for some time, as everyone enjoyed the food. When the last of the desserts faded away, Dumbledore stood.

"Now that we've all been fed and watered, it's time to head to bed. Prefects, would you lead your first years to your Common Rooms please!"

As the students began to get up, Dumbledore raised a hand. "Mr. Potter, Mr. Wallace. May I speak to the two of you please?"

Harry and Travis blinked at each other before heading up to the Head table. There, Dumbledore smiled. "Do not worry; you're not in any trouble. I just wanted to welcome you back, Mr. Wallace. And I wanted to apologize again for what happened to you last year, Mr. Wallace."

Travis just nodded quietly. "Thank you, Professor. I'll try to have a better year this time." As if to agree with him, Ghrian let out a yip.

Dumbledore smiled. "As for you, Mr. Potter, I wanted to ask that you come by my office tomorrow after your classes were done. There is something important we need to talk about."

Harry nodded. "I understand Professor. I'll see you tomorrow after class."

"Very good. By the way, I enjoy Mars Bars," he said. Harry blinked, before remembering the gargoyle in front of the stairs to the Headmaster's office. He nodded in understanding, as the two left, giving Hagrid thumbs up as they did. Hagrid just grinned at them as they left.

They joined back up with their friends, and headed up towards the Gryffindor Common Room. As they neared the portrait, Ginny spoke up. "So Harry, did you find out why you didn't have a Hogsmeade slip?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. The teacher's are worried that Sirius Black might attack me when I'm there. So….they decided it would be safer if I stayed in Hogwarts."

Neville blinked. "But wouldn't Sirius be less likely to attack you on the very doorstep of Hogwarts, especially with Dementors all over the place?"

Hermione shook her head. "He killed thirteen people in broad daylight and laughed about it. I don't think he would care about attacking Harry in the middle of Hogsmeade."

Harry nodded. "I agree with Hermione on this one. It would probably be better if I stayed here. Though admittedly….I wouldn't mind visiting once," he said quietly.

Ginny smiled. "I'm sure you'll be able to next year."

Harry gave her a small smile and nodded, causing her to blush lightly. They soon arrived at the portrait leading into the Gryffindor Common Room. The portrait was of a large woman wearing a pink dress, who like all magical paintings, was moving. She looked at them as they arrived. "Password?" She asked them.

Hermione nodded. "I heard it from a prefect downstairs. Fortuna Major!" The Pink Lady, as she was known, smiled and her portrait swung open, letting them in to the circular common room. The walls and floor were colored crimson and gold, the colors of Gryffindor. Several cushy chairs and couches were scattered around, and a fire roared in the large fireplace.

Seeing as it was late, they all said good night before retiring to their dorm rooms. Neville and Harry entered the Third Year boy's dorm, where their trunks had already been brought up, probably by House Elves. Harry sighed happily as he changed into his pajamas and slumped on the bed. It was good to be back.

_Next morning_

Harry sighed as he folded up a letter he had written for Blaze to take home. He wanted to ask his dad and mom about the Dementor's, see if there was a connection between them and Battle Mages. For now, he had breakfast to look forward to.

He arrived in the Great Hall and saw his friends already there. Grinning he joined. "Starting without me? This going to be a trend?" he asked as he sat down.

They all just grinned, as Hermione handed him a schedule. "McGonagall already passed them around. You and I have Ancient Runes first thing today. Poor Neville has Divination. I've heard that the professor is some type of fraud."

Neville smiled. "Guess I'll find out," he said with a grin.

Ginny pouted. 'It sucks that I have to wait a year still. I want to try Ancient runes," she said.

Harry chuckled. "We'll tell you all about after class," he said. Ginny just smiled happily at that and nodded.

As they finished breakfast, they all said their goodbyes as they split up for their various classes. Ginny headed out onto the grounds for Herbology, while Neville went to look for the Divination Classroom in the North Tower. Harry and Hermione meanwhile made a stop in the Owlery so Harry could send the letter home with Blaze, before heading towards the sixth floor west wing, where the Ancient Runes classroom was at. They both entered and choice seats towards the middle of the class.

As the students slowly entered the classroom, Hermione pulled out the textbook for the class, _Ancient Runes Made Easy_. She began reading it, as they waited for their teacher.

When the bell finally rang, the last student entered, followed by their teacher, a rather nice looking witch in her thirties with dirty blonde hair in a ponytail, glasses, and dark blue robes. "Hello everyone. I'm Professor Bathsheda Babbling, and I'll be your teacher on the subject of Ancient Runes," she said, adjusting the glasses on her face. "Now first off, who can tell me the importance of Ancient Runes?"

Not surprisingly, Hermione's hand went up, and Professor babbling pointed to her. "Ancient Runes was the primary form of writing for many of the older tribes and cultures of the Wizarding World. The study of Ancient Runes allows us to translate documents and other written words used by the ancient magical users. Runes also are used today to encode certain messages of importance, as well as other features in various parts of society."

Professor Babbling smiled. "Excellent work Miss…Granger, yes?" Hermione nodded eagerly, as the Professor smiled. "Ten points to Gryffindor. However, as we have recently discovered, runes can hold other importance as well. Can anyone guess what I am referring to?"

This time Harry's hand went up. When Professor babbling pointed to him, he answered. "Runes have been and continued to be used by Goblins to enchant weapons, armor, and vaults. When the right combination of runes are added to an object and magic is channeled through it, the rune can empower the object with abilities based on the translation of a rune. For example, Goblins often carve runes into the Vaults at Gringotts that create shields and barriers to prevent someone from entering or leaving without the use of the correct key or magical aura. Other cultures and groups have used these practices, though not to the extent of the dwarves."

Professor Babbling smiled. "Very well done, Mr. Potter," she said, reading of his name before doing a double-take. "Harry Potter?" She whispered.

Harry just nodded, trying not to roll his eyes. Hermione stifled a giggle, as Bathsheda proceeded onwards. "W-Well, yes, good work Mr. Potter. Not too many people know that about Ancient Runes. As such, the study of Ancient Runes is critical for those who wish to go into a career involving the study of Magical History, or into a career as a Curse Breaker. Now, please open your text books to chapter one," she said with a smile.

The class was largely spent on going over the basics of Ancient Runes. Professor Babbling introduced them to the basic list of runes they would probably most run into, and thus would need to know by heart. She discussed each one's meaning, before taking students questions on each rune.

By the end of the class, Hermione and Harry were grinning. The class had been a lot of fun, and informative. They grinned, deciding to bug Neville about it, and see if he wouldn't try to transfer.

They headed to Transfiguration class, where they met up with Neville and the other Gryffindor's of their year group. Harry and Hermione grinned at Neville. "So, how was Divination?" Hermione asked.

Neville sighed. "Complete rubbish," he said. "Professor Trelawney predicted I would break one of her tea cups, and I didn't. Then she said Ron was going to die in three days from an explosion. If I didn't know better, I'd say she's just all smoke and mirrors. Or in this case, heavy perfume and gaudy jewelry."

They both chuckled. "You should switch to Ancient Runes. It was absolutely fascinating," Harry said.

Neville grumbled. "Don't remind me," he said.

Their Transfiguration class was very interesting. They were beginning to learn about Animagus, wizards and witches who could shape shift into animals. Professor McGonagall demonstrated by turning into a tabby cat with square markings around her eyes that resembled her glasses. Most of the class cheered, except for Ron, who was uneasy about Trelawney's prediction of his death.

After her demonstration, she began to explain it to them. In order to become an Animagus, one had to first find out what their animal form was. Generally this was done by means of a potion. Once it was brewed the user would drink it, and would be given a vision, in which they would be greeted by their Animagus form.

Afterwards, the Animagus would undergo extensive training to achieve the ability to transform. However, this training was dangerous, and could easily backfire on the trainee. It also required incredible power and focus to achieve.

If someone succeeded in becoming an Animagus, they had to register with the Ministry, so that they would be unable to misuse this power.

McGonagall then produced a clipboard. "If there is anyone who is interested in seeing if they could become an Animagus, please sign up here after class. I'll be conducting special lessons for those who are interested," she said. "However, more than likely if any of you are capable of becoming Animagus, it won't be until at least your sixth or seventh year."

There were excited murmurs through the class, as Harry grinned. "I definitely am going for it," he said. "Who knows what awesome thing we can maybe turn into?" He asked.

Hermione and Neville nodded as well, eager to see if they could become Animagus as well.

At the end of class, the three of them signed up, before heading off to lunch. "So all we've got left is Care for Magical Creatures?" Neville asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yep. I can't wait to see what Hagrid has planned. Though I hope it's not too much."

Harry chuckled. "Sadly, Hagrid's definition of too much is different from ours. But I'm sure we'll be fine," he said, as they sat down to eat.

_Battle Mage Sanctuary_

Gareth hummed quietly as he walked back towards his home within the Sanctuary. It was quiet without the boys home. Admittedly, it had been quiet at the beginning of the previous school year, but it hadn't been that long before Travis had returned home. Gareth quietly clenched his fist as he remembered why, before loosening it. Travis was much stronger this time. And he knew Dumbledore wouldn't allow such a thing to happen again.

He entered the apartment his family had, grinning. "Honey, I'm home!" he called out jokingly.

Marian grinned as she hugged him and kissed his cheek. "You're just in time. Blaze came in with a letter," she said.

Gareth raised an eyebrow. "Already? Should I be worried?" he asked, half joking.

Marian smiled. "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. I waited till you got back to open it," she said as she began serving up lunch.

Gareth chuckled as he found the letter and opened it. He began to read it as he sat down. However, part way through he froze, his eyes wide and his posture rigid. Marian blinked as she saw her husband react this way. "Gareth, what is it?" She asked.

Gareth trembled, before dropping the letter. "I need to talk to the Elders. We have a very serious problem," he said, shooting up and rushing out of the apartment.

Marian picked the letter up and began reading it, only for her face to go pale. She dropped the letter, trembling. "Elements protect us," she whispered in fear.

_Hogwarts Grounds_

Harry breathed in the fresh air as they headed down towards Hagrid hut, where they would be taking the Care for Magical Creature's class. The rain from the previous night had ended early in the morning, leaving behind the fresh smell of wet grass and woodland. Harry grinned as they neared the hut, only for the grin to fade. Gathered near the hut were the unmistakable forms of Draco Malfoy and the other Third Year Slytherins. Harry groaned seeing them.

"Why do they have to be here? This was supposed to be a fun class," he said. Neville just patted him on the shoulder as they arrived.

Hagrid soon emerged from his hut once they all arrived. "Yeh all here? Good! Got a real treat for yer all. Follow me now!" he said, as he began to lead them along the edge of the forest, eventually reaching a fenced paddock. Currently though, it was empty.

Hagrid grinned as he turned to them. "Now, if yeh could open yer books we'll get started," he said, watching them.

Harry pulled out his book, and began to untie it, when he heard Draco's drawling voice. "How are we supposed to open them?" he snapped, holding up his book. It was being held closed by a belt. Many of the other students had done something similar, in securing their book.

Hagrid blinked. "None of yeh was able to open yer books?" He asked.

Harry raised his hand. "I was. You stroke the spine, and it opens," he said. "However it came back to life after I closed it. Is there any way to…well tame the book?" He asked.

Hagrid came over. "Well there is actually. While the book is open, yeh got to tickle the inside of the covers. It makes the book hibernate, though if yeh jostle it too much it will wake up. Let me show yeh," he said, as he took Harry's book and removed the belt around it. Before it could snap at him, he stroked its spine, causing it to flop open. Then he flipped to the cover, and tickled it. The book shuddered, before settling down again. Hagrid proceeded to open and close it several times. "Yeh see? Couldn't be simpler," he said with a grin.

Draco sneered. "What is even the point of a book that can rip our arms off? Is it supposed to be a joke?" He snapped.

Hagrid seemed a bit flustered. "W-Well now…it was the book I learned from when I went to school here. So I thought it best to use it," he said, losing some of his energy. "I…I'll go get the beasts now, since yeh all have your books open," he said, as he moved into the woods.

Draco just scoffed as Hagrid left. "Honestly, this place is going to the dogs, if they're letting oafs like him teach. When I tell my father about this, he'll-."

"Oh stuff a toadstool in it Malfoy," Harry said. "I swear, were you born to complain or do you just feel the need to hear your own voice?"

Draco growled, and was about to retort when Lavender Brown, one of the Gryffindor girls, squealed. "Look!" She yelled, pointing.

Hagrid was coming out of the woods, leading a small herd of creatures. They were quite shocking to see, as they had the rear legs and body of a horse, but the front legs, upper body, and head of an eagle, as well as wings like an eagle. Each was its own unique color, and after getting over the shock of seeing them, Harry had to admit they were rather majestic looking.

Each was wearing a large leather collar, which had a chain attached to it. Hagrid held all these chains, as he led them to the edge of the paddock and tied them to it. "Hippogriffs! Beautiful, aren't they?"

Harry just nodded quietly, as Hagrid continued. "Now first thing yeh all should know is Hippogriffs be proud creatures. Easily offended, they are. So you don't ever want to insult one, as it could be the last thing yeh do."

Draco's eyes narrowed a bit at that, as Hagrid went on with his lesson. "Now when yer greeting a Hippogriff, yeh want to let them make the first move. Yeh bow to them, and if they're feeling good about yeh, they'll bow back, and you can get close to them. If they don't bow, yeh want to back away quick like. Anyone fancy a go?"

The entire class seemed hesitant. Each hippogriff had a powerful beak that could probably tear through them, and the talons on their front legs seemed very nasty and sharp. But Harry finally mustered his courage and moved forward.

"Good man there!" Hagrid said, as he led a storm grey hippogriff away from the others. "Let's see how yeh handle Buckbeak here. Now yeh gonna want to make eye contact with him, and try not to blink too much. They don't trust yeh if yeh blink too much."

Harry nodded to Hagrid before slowly approaching, his green eyes making contact with the amber like eyes of Buckbeak. The Hippogriff watched him almost imperiously, as Harry stopped and slowly bowed. He looked back up at Buckbeak as he rose from his bow.

For several seconds, nothing happened. Hagrid went to move forward. "Alright, yeh may want to back up Harry," he said; only to stop as Buckbeak bent his scaly eagle like legs in an unmistakable bow. "Well look at that!" Hagrid said, as Harry slowly moved forward and gently touched Buckbeak's beak, slowly petting it. The hippogriff closed his eyes, leaning in a bit. "Well done Harry! I reckon he would let yeh ride him now."

Harry blinked. "What?" He asked.

He grinned. "Sure! Give it a try!" he said, as he helped Harry to climb onto Buckbeak's back. "Now don't grab any of his feathers, alright? He'll hate that."

Harry blinked and shifted, getting more comfortable, before nodding. "Alright."

Hagrid grinned and smacked Buckbeak on the rump, causing the massive wings to unfold, and Buckbeak to launch himself into the air. Harry's eyes widened as he wrapped his arms around Buckbeak's neck as the hippogriff rose into the air.

Eventually though, as the mighty creature leveled off, Harry slowly loosened his grip and began to look around. He had ridden on a broom, but this….it felt different. Maybe because he wasn't in control, but somehow it felt more….free. He grinned, as Buckbeak began to circle the school grounds. Everything seemed so beautiful.

He grinned, raising his arms up and whooping, as Buckbeak let out a joyful cry.

As they neared the rest of the class, Buckbeak began to dive again. Harry gripped with his legs while holding onto Buckbeak's neck, until they landed. Almost as soon as he did Harry was hopping off, grinning. "That was amazing!" He said, amidst cheers from the Gryffindors and even a few of the Slytherin's. Draco though seemed disappointed.

"Good man there!" Hagrid said, before grinning to the rest of the class. "Who else fancies a try?" He asked.

The rest of the class began to hesitantly enter the paddock, as Hagrid unchained the other Hippogriffs. Soon all the other students were bowing nervously to their Hippogriffs. Some were having success, others not so much.

Draco and his cronies Crabbe and Goyle had taken over Buckbeak now. Draco was petting Buckbeak's beak, while sneering. "This isn't hard at all, is it? After all, if Potter can do it, anyone can. You're not dangerous at all, are you? You big dumb ugly brute."

Harry's eyes widened and he immediately whispered something under his breath while slamming one hand into the ground, as Buckbeak roared while rearing back. The ground beneath Draco shifted, knocking him sideways, as Buckbeak's talons slashed downwards. This resulted in said talons slashing Draco's arm open, instead of them gutting him where he stood.

Draco screamed in pain as he lay there, his arm bleeding. Hagrid was there in a flash, wrestling Buckbeak into his collar and tying him back up. "I'm dying! That monster killed me!" Draco screamed in pain.

Hagrid growled. "Yeh not dying!" he shouted as he grabbed Draco up. "The rest of yeh, get inside! I'm taking him to the Infirmary," he said as he rushed towards the school.

Harry was trembling, one fist clenched in anger. That anger worsened when he heard Pansy Parkinson, a female Slytherin Third Year shout something out. "It was all Hagrid's fault! He should be fired right away!" She said.

Harry whirled, his eyes almost glowing. "Shut your mouth you dumb cow!" He roared. Pansy was struck dumb as Harry advanced on her. "If Malfoy had actually decided to pay attention to Hagrid instead of being the spoiled little brat he is, he would have known not to insult Buckbeak! So you want to blame anyone, blame Draco!" He turned and stormed away, leaving stunned Gryffindor and Slytherin's in his wake.

Harry had reached the entranceway when Neville and Hermione caught up. "Harry, where are you going?" Hermione asked, panting.

"I'm going to Dumbledore to make sure that he knows the truth of what happened before Draco has his daddy spin things out of control," he said, as he stormed inside and was heading straight towards the Headmaster's office.

Dumbledore was currently sitting at his desk, quietly reading a book while sucking on a lemon drop, when there was some rather agitated knocking at his door. The Headmaster looked up, blinking. "Come in please," he said.

The door opened and a rather agitated Harry entered, followed by his friends Neville and Hermione. "Ahhhh, Harry. May I ask what you and your friends are doing here?" He asked. "If I'm not mistaken, you should be in Care for Magical Creature, yes?"

Harry took a deep breath. "The class was cut short, Professor. Mr. Malfoy caused a disturbance in class. A very serious one."

Dumbledore sighed as he sat back. "I see. Continue please?"

So Harry explained how Hagrid had been teaching them about hippogriffs, and how he had specifically told them it was dangerous and even fatal to insult one. And then he told him about how Draco had purposefully insulted the hippogriff Buckbeak, resulting in the class having to be ended.

"I wanted to make sure you knew the truth before hand, before Draco or his father tried to turn things in their favor," he said.

Dumbledore sighed. "I see. Well while I admit, Hagrid should have perhaps started with something…perhaps less dangerous, I agree that he took the necessary precautions ahead of time. I will do my best to see that no charges are made against Hagrid or the hippogriff Buckbeak. However, Lucius Malfoy still has much influence, so there may be a trial," he said.

Harry nodded. "Then I'll be a witness as to what truly happened." His two friends agreed with him.

Dumbledore smiled. "It's good to see that Hagrid has such loyal friends and students. Thank you," he said. "Incidentally, since you're here Harry, perhaps we could have that meeting I wished to have later today? Mr. Longbottom, Miss Granger, if you two would mind giving us privacy?"

The two nodded at that. "We'll see you at the Common Room Harry," Hermione said, as the two left.

After they were gone, Dumbledore stood up and moved to the fireplace. Grabbing some Floo powder from a pot next to the fireplace, he threw it in and called out "Nicolas Flamel". Harry's eyes went wide at that, and went wider when the fireplace seemed to intensify, before a figure stepped out.

The man was wearing a bright emerald robe with golden embroidery, and had shoulder length white hair with matching beard and burnsides. He shook himself a bit, as if ridding himself of dust and soot, before smiling at Dumbledore. "This was a little earlier than expected, Albus."

"Indeed Nicolas, but young Harry came earlier than expected. I thought now was as good a time as any," he said with a smile.

Nicolas nodded. "Very well then. First off Mr. Potter, it is an honor to meet you. I want to thank you for saving my Philosopher's Stone in your first year," he said, shaking Harry's hand.

Harry just stared in awe and shock. "You…..you…..you…..you're…..you're…."

"Yes, I am Nicolas Flamel," he said with a chuckle. "It's amazing how many people are speechless and tongue tied when they meet me. Though it's something you get use to."

Harry just stared, his mouth opened, before blinking and shaking his head. "F-Forgive me….it's just….to meet someone like you is….it's an honor."

Nicolas smiled at him. "Then we're both honored to meet each other, aren't we?" He asked with a chuckle. "Now Harry, I'm not just here to thank you for saving the Philosopher's Stone. I actually have something for you," he said, as he pulled out a wrapped package from his robes. "I have been saving this for close to four hundred years now Harry, ever since I discovered it quite back accident. I've been waiting for the one who I was supposed to give it to. And at long last, that time has come."

He handed the book to Harry, who blinked as he took it, and then slowly began to unwrap it. What he found was a rather large tome, wrapped in leather with Celtic symbols etched on the front. And I the center of it all was an emblem that made Harry stare, before looking up at Flamel and Dumbledore. "This is…it can't be," he said.

Flamel nodded. "It is Harry Potter. You hold in your hands, the Grimoire of Merlin himself."

* * *

**And scene!**

**Okay. Well this ran longer than I anticipated. And I still didn't cover everything I wanted to cover. I had intended to reveal the history of Battle Mages and Dementor's in this chapter, but covering the first day of Hogwarts, and Harry getting Merlin's spell book at the end just went too long. So you'll have to wait till next chapter.**

**So, I hope you all enjoyed this, and that you'll stick around for the next chapter! And before anyone asks or freaks out, no harry isn't going to automatically be learning Merlin's spells left and right. If anything, he'd probably need at least a couple hundred years or so to learn everything in that spell book. But trust me when I say that Harry needs the spell book to counter what I have planned in this year and in the later years. **

**Anyways, please review and let me know what you think! Till next time!**

**Also Happy New Year! Or post Happy New Year, depending on when I post this chapter.**


	3. Boggarts and Wars

**Well a lot of you were really intrigued by the appearance of Merlin's Spell book. I'm glad you all liked it. I thought it was a rather interesting twist. *Happy grin***

**So, now it's time to explain how such an artifact ended up in Merlin's hands, and why it is now being given to Harry.**

**But before we get to that, I've got an ad here. **

**For those of you who are Mass Effect fans, Mandalore the freedom has a Mass Effect challenge fanfic for anyone who's interested. Please contact him if you wish to possibly take him up on the challenge. **

**And now a second ad for you all. Nightmares Around Winter has recently put his Naruto fanfic Dead Man Walking up for adoption. If you're interested in taking on a bloodline Naruto fanfic, or know someone who is interested, give him a call.**

**And now, on with the show!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. It is the property of J. K. Rowling. I only own the Battle Mages and Oc's of this fanfic.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

**Boggarts and Wars**

Harry just looked up in shock. "Merlin's Grimoire?! This is Merlin's Grimoire?!" He questioned them, his eyes wide. He was holding perhaps the most valuable Wizarding artifact still to exist in the magical world. This was the spell book of the first wizard to exist. The creator of the branch of magic requiring a staff or wand. This book was rumored to contain all his spells, his rituals, his knowledge. And he was holding it in his hands.

Nicolas Flamel nodded. "Yes it is, young Harry. Yes it is. It's rather interesting how I came across it," he said as he took a lemon drop from the bowl sitting on Dumbledore's desk and popped it into his mouth. After a few moments of sucking on the treat, he spoke again. "You see, I've always been a bit of an inventor. New spells, potions, that sort of thing. I like to tinker with the boundaries of magic and such, slowly pushing them little by little. My mother and father thought it was cute, when I would run around experimenting with harmless potion ingredients that they would let me use. With their supervision, of course."

He smiled fondly at the memories in his mind. "When I ended up graduating from Hogwarts here, I decided that before I followed my desire to invent new spells and such, I would pursue a career in magical archeology. Many people were fascinated by the ancient burial sites and structures left behind by the ancient magical peoples. I saw it as a valuable way to study how our ancestors lived, and perhaps use the knowledge I would gain to further my goals."

"As it so happens, the second expedition I joined was to examine a recently discovered hidden crypt discovered below ancient Stonehenge. What we found was amazing. It was almost like a labyrinth of ancient storage rooms filled with scrolls. From what we were able to figure out, Merlin had used Stonehenge as a focal point for gathering together witches and wizards, and tutoring them in secret. In essence, Stonehenge went from being a Druidic Ritual Site to being the first magical school of witches and wizards."

"The team was eventually split up into pairs, to quickly explore the rooms and map it all out. My partner and I found one room that was sealed shut. It took quite a bit of effort for us to open the stone door used to close it. Sadly, neither of us noticed a ward had been set up. The moment I stepped into the room, the doorway collapsed. My partner barely managed to jump away in time, but I was trapped inside. Needless to say I panicked, considering I was trapped in a dark room with who knows how much oxygen left to breathe. My partner went off to get help, as I used my wand to illuminate the room. What I found shocked me. The room I had entered was apparently Merlin's personal study within his 'school'. It had been here where he not only studied and invented new magical spells, but also recorded them down, so that others might learn them one day. As I examined the room, I suddenly came across that book, sitting on a pedestal," he said, grinning.

Harry looked down at the book, before looking up in confusion. "But….why didn't you turn this book over to your fellow archeologists? This would have been the find of a century!" He asked, confused.

Nicolas smiled. "Believe me Harry, when I realized what that book was, that was my first thought. But sadly when I opened it, I found the book to be blank. There was not a single word written in it. I was disappointed, thinking perhaps it had just been a journal Merlin never got around to writing. That is, until the book suddenly began to turn its own pages, shooting back to the very first one. Needless to say I was rather alarmed, especially when words appeared on the page."

"Merlin had apparently cast some very powerful protective charms over the book, ensuring no one would be able to read it. And he had somehow been able to copy his memories into the book. Because the book introduced itself as such. As a copy of Merlin, left behind in the book to ensure that it fell into the right hands."

Harry blinked. "The right hands?"

The ancient alchemist nodded. "I asked that very question, and the book responded. It told me that towards the end of his life, Merlin had a vision of the future. He had a vision of a great darkness sweeping across the land, destroying all in its path. The darkness eventually came to a castle, the last beacon of light. Just as the darkness was planning to swallow the castle, a figure stepped out, hooded and cloaked. The figure was wielding a glowing staff in one hand, and a gleaming sword in the other. He fought the darkness with sword, magic, and even conjuring the very elements themselves, before suddenly summoning Merlin's Grimoire and using it to unleash a powerful spell that destroyed the darkness."

"When the vision ended, Merlin quietly consulted the greatest of his students in the field of Divination. They both came to the same conclusion. Merlin had seen a vision of an event to come. That in the future, a great darkness would sweep across the land, but be stopped by a powerful spell caster. One who utilized the magic's of both wizard….and battle mage."

Harry's eyes widened at that as Nicolas nodded. "The book told me about how Merlin knew he would need to ensure his Grimoire would find its way into the hands of such a warrior. But with his time growing short, he would not be able to do it. And not trusting that the hearts of his students and those that followed would always remain pure, and that they would faithfully guard his Grimoire until the one destined to use it would arrive, he protected the book with enchantments that ensured no one would be able to read its pages."

"After explaining all this, the book asked for me to place my hand upon it. I hesitantly did so, and felt warmth spread through my hand. Afterwards, the book told me that while I was not the one it seeks, I was pure enough that it could trust me. It asked me to take it from this place, and to hold onto it until the day when I found the spell caster who would reunite the World of Wizards and the World of Mages. When I pointed out that such an event could take decades, or even centuries, the book revealed one of its pages. Upon it was the process to create what it called the Initial Philosopher's Stone. Unlike the true Philosopher's Stone, this one would create only a limited version of the Elixir of Life. One that would extend one's life for a period of time, but would not make them immortal. Nor would it create gold. With this, I would be able to continue what the book was asking of me."

Nicolas chuckled softly. "Naturally I was completely stunned. This book was basically telling me that in the future some great evil was going to terrorize the world. And it would be my responsibility to guard this book until the one who was suppose to wield it came. How does one comprehend such an event? And yet….some part of me….deep down, some part of me knew it had to be true," he said. "Which is why, I accepted. I hid the book away when my fellow team members came to rescue me. And while they happily explored the room, I slipped away to hide the Grimoire in my home."

As Harry just sat there in shock, Flamel smiled. "That was back in the late thirteen hundreds. Ever since then, I have quietly waited, until my dear friend and student Albus Dumbledore came to me, not to long after your first year here Harry. He and my wife were the only two I ever shared that story with. And both eagerly agreed to help me. Albus told me all about your adventures here. But more importantly, he told me about how you were raised by the Battle Mages, but how you were also learning to be a wizard as well. And almost as soon as I heard about you, I knew. I knew that you were the one."

Harry's eyes widened before he shot up, the book landing on Dumbledore's desk. "W-wait one minute there! I think you've got the wrong person here."

Flamel chuckled. "Do I Harry? I am looking for one who is going to wield the powers of the Battle Mage and wizard in battle against a great darkness that will threaten the land. And unless I'm mistaken, you're a battle Mage and a Wizard, who will be fighting against the Dark Lord Voldemort one day. Yes, like Dumbledore I too don't truly believe he's gone. I believe he is out there as well, waiting to begin his reign of terror again."

Dumbledore quietly put a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Harry, I never wanted to burden you with any of these responsibilities. I had hoped originally to give you some time to be a normal teenager here in school, and allow you happiness. But you've already accepted the burdens placed upon you. And as such, I want to try and help you be ready."

Harry shook his head. "I-It can't be me. It just can't." he whispered.

Flamel smiled. "There is one way to find out," he said, as he quietly opened the book to the first page. "Place your hand on the page Harry. And then we will see."

Harry trembled a bit, but slowly approached the book. Slowly reaching out, he placed his hand upon the book.

The entire room seemed to glow, as Harry's robes and hair began to flutter, as if blown by some nonexistent wind. Harry gasped as his eyes blanked, and he suddenly found himself floating in a gray mist.

"Welcome, young one," echoed a voice through the mists, before a figure approached. As their image became clear, Harry's eyes widened. Before him stood a tall, old yet powerful looking wizard. He wore robes of dark, almost midnight blue, with a pointed wizard hat on his head. His long white beard flowed down towards his waist. His dark eyes calmly watched young Harry.

Harry trembled quietly. "Merlin," he whispered.

Merlin chuckled. "To a degree. I am the memories, left within my Grimoire. When you touched my book, I felt the magic flowing through you and I knew that you are the one that I saw in my vision," he said. Seeing Harry open his mouth he raised his hand to quiet him. "Please, let me speak."

Harry closed his mouth, as Merlin continued. "I know that all of this is overwhelming to you. It is not every day that a young teenager such as you is burdened with such power and responsibility. And I am sorry that it must be this way."

Harry trembled quietly. "I…I've known that I was going to play some important role someday but….but this is…more than I thought. If your vision of the future is true…will he become so strong that I require your spell book to defeat him?" He whispered.

Merlin nodded sadly. "I'm afraid so Harry. The power I sensed in my vision was incredibly potent. Almost on par with my own. To defeat him, you must become as powerful. But more importantly, you must believe that you can achieve this goal," he said, as he placed a hand on his shoulder.

Harry looked down quietly, staring at the nonexistent floor, before looking up, his eyes now more determined.

Nicolas and Dumbledore watched Harry as he stood there, his face blank as his hand remained on the book. With a shuddering gasp, he suddenly let go of the book and stumbled back, panting. Nicolas caught him and eased him into a chair. "Are you alright m'boy?" He asked.

Harry nodded. "I am. Thank you," he said, as he looked at the still empty book. He gently picked it up, closing it quietly. Pulling out his wand, he tapped it three times on the book. The entire book began to morph and change, becoming a smaller book wrapped in green leather, with golden letters on the cover. Harry smiled, opening up what looked like an exact copy of _Quidditch Throughout the Ages_. Inside was a chapter describing the various Quidditch Teams throughout the world.

Harry grinned softly. "It's a special enchantment Merlin left behind. You can disguise the book as any book you've already read," he said, before sliding it into his bag.

Flamel smiled as he clapped harry on the shoulder. "It's no problem. I am just glad I could finally give it to the one who it was suppose to go to. But how are you feeling about this?" He asked a bit worriedly.

Harry sighed. "I would be lying if I said I'm not overwhelmed. I always knew I would face Voldemort again someday. I just….I don't think I fully grasped the magnitude of how difficult that may be. Not until you finished your explanation," he said quietly. "I…I know what I must do, but still I…I don't know if I'll be able to. So much is resting on me, depending on me to fight him, and win."

Dumbledore came over. "This is why I had wanted to wait, before revealing all this to you," he said softly. "You are too young to bare such burdens. But the deed is already done. And all I can say is that I will help you bare this burden, Harry. And so will your friends and family, when the time comes."

Harry nodded quietly. "I….I'll need to think this all over," he said, as he stood up. "Mr. Flamel, it was a pleasure to meet you. Perhaps you could visit the Battle mage Sanctuary some time, with the Elders permission."

Flamel grinned. "I might like that. A final adventure," he said.

Harry nodded. "Good day to you both," he said, before leaving.

Dumbledore sighed as he sat down. "It is hard not being able to take the boys burdens off him. No young one should be forced into such things."

Flamel nodded as well. "I agree with you there. But I think he represents the potential of the next generation, to surpass the old."

Dumbledore smiled. "That he does," he said softly. "That he does."

_Thursday Morning_

Harry sighed quietly as he sat in Potions Class. It had been three days since the events that had changed his life. Three days since Draco had been attacked by Buckbeak after provoking him, and since he had received Merlin's Grimoire. He had started to read the first few sections of it, which contained a journal of Merlin's exploration into magic, the theory behind his spells and ritual. He had yet to take a look at the various spells the great wizard had listed in them.

Shortly after arriving back at the Gryffindor Common Room, Hermione and Neville had asked him about what had happened when they left the Headmaster's office. Not wanting to lie, but not wanting to tell them about Merlin's Grimoire just yet, Harry had simply stated that it was currently a secret between himself and Dumbledore.

His two friends accepted that, and once Ginny joined them, the four of them quietly began to work. However, the three older students couldn't stop worrying about Hagrid. Eventually, they finally gave in and headed down to his hut, with Ginny following them quickly.

They had found Hagrid drunk and wallowing in self pity. The Board of Governor's had been told about what happened. And while Dumbledore had gone out of his way to insist Hagrid was not at fault, even stating the eyewitness accounts given to him by Harry, Hermione and Neville, the Board of Governor's still were going to begin an official inquiry. The Quartet had done their best to cheer Hagrid up. Sadly, once the drunken Groundskeeper had cleared his head, he became rather angry that the quartet had snuck out to see him and escorted them back inside, saying it was far too dangerous with the Dementors and Sirius Black on the loose.

Sadly, that was not the end of Harry's surprises and troubles for the week. The very next day he had been called back to Dumbledore's office.

_**Flashback**_

_Harry entered the Headmaster's office, only to blink as he saw his dad there, looking very serious, Dumbledore looking grim, and his brother Travis looking nervous. "Dad? What are you doing here?" He asked._

_Gareth sighed. "I received your letter about what happened on the train Harry. And I'm afraid I have grim news. News that needs to be shared with your brother, and Dumbledore. Our Elders are also going to the Ministry of Magic, to share this tale as well."_

_As Harry sat down, Gareth continued. "You said that on the train, the Dementor called you a Battle Mage, then seemed to focus its power entirely on you, yes?"_

_Harry nodded. "I assume so. I still have no clue what it was doing exactly. Do you know dad?"_

_Gareth nodded quietly. "I'm afraid I do, Harry. Dementors are perhaps amongst the most evil of dark creatures that stalk the face of the Earth. A Dementor feeds on the happiness of humans, both muggle and magical alike. They suck away your happy memories and emotions, leaving only the bad memories behind. Their presence also creates a chilling aura, sucking the warmth and light from the air itself. They are without pity or remorse, and seek only to feed. But that's not even the worst of their crimes. If a Dementor gets close enough to you, they'll suck out your soul. The Ministry of magic calls it The Dementor's Kiss."_

_Harry and Travis's eyes went wide. "They suck out your soul?" Travis asked in fear._

_Gareth nodded quietly. "Yes. It's a fate worse than death, as your body becomes an empty shell. But I'm getting off topic. The reason I am here is because you two are in danger because of those Dementors."_

"_But why dad?" Harry asked. "Why are we in danger?"_

_Gareth sighed quietly. "It has to do with something that happened centuries ago. In the early 1400's, the Battle Mages learned that a Dark Sorceress, Morrigana, was researching a ritual to open a portal to a realm of darkness. From this realm she would draw forth an army of dark creatures with which she would conquer the world. The Mages united together to counter this threat, and an army of over five hundred thousand Battle Mages marched to Norway, where it was reported she was beginning the ritual. Sadly, they arrived too late to stop her from opening the portal. From the portal poured out a horde of dark creatures."_

"_The battle lasted for three days, and resulted in overwhelming losses for both sides. In the end though, the Battle Mages managed to slay Morrigana. With her death, the portal was closed, cutting off the Dark creatures still in our world. Those that weren't cut down fled to the far corners of the world, to try and survive. Amongst these were the Dementors."_

_Harry and Travis gripped their arm rests. "So the Dementors….they want revenge against the Battle Mages, for cutting them off from their home?"_

_Gareth nodded. "Dementors do not age, and they were among the most sentient of the creatures that poured through the portal into our realm. More than likely, they not only were furious at their defeat, but also at being cut off from their home. While fighting them, the mages discovered they are weakened severely by incredibly powerful fire spells. But we have found no way to guarantee a death blow against them. Over the years after the battle, Battle Mages would encounter single Dementors or even small groups of them. Each time the Battle Mages were attacked viciously by the Dementors. Eventually though, they disappeared. We had thought they had been wiped out. Apparently we were wrong."_

"_And now those things are right outside the castle," Travis said, shaking in fear._

_Dumbledore smiled at him. "Do not worry Travis. I will not allow a single Dementor to cross the grounds of Hogwarts. Inside these walls, you are perfectly safe. I swear it."_

_Gareth knelt before his sons. "I want you two to promise me you won't go near the Dementors. While the Ministry may claim they control them, what happened on the train has shown us that they more than likely will attack if given the chance. So please, do not give them one."_

_Harry and Travis both nodded. "We promise dad," they said in unison. _

_**Flashback Ends**_

Harry sighed, eager for the week to end. It seemed this week so far was nothing but burdens and surprises, and he wanted to try and get some normalcy back.

He and Neville were working together on the potion Snape had assigned them, when the door banged open and Draco Malfoy swaggered in. The Malfoy heir had not been seen all week after the incident in the Care for Magical Creature's class. Now he came in, late and wearing bandages all over his right arm, as well as a sling.

Before he could even make it four steps though, Snape's voice stopped him cold. "Mr. Malfoy, I expect students to be on time for my classes. 10 points from Slytherin for being late," he snapped.

Draco scowled a bit. "Professor, I only just returned from St. Mungo's, where I was having my arm healed and bandaged," he said, indicating said limb. "I just barely was released and allowed to return to school."

Harry snorted quietly. Madame Pomfrey was one of the best Healers he had ever seen, re-growing the bones in his left arm last year when they were removed. If she couldn't heal a cut or slash like that, there were probably very few who could.

Something that Snape knew as well. "Mr. Malfoy, Madame Pomfrey is one of the best Healers in magical Britain. And she has already informed both myself and Professor Dumbledore that there is absolutely nothing wrong with your arm. She healed it, checked it over, and pronounced you in perfectly good health. Most doctors at St. Mungo's would more than likely agree with her assessment. Now either you will drop this charade of pretending to be wounded, or I will remove you from the Quidditch team due to your injuries, is that understood?" He said.

Draco sneered, before removing the bandages and sling and tossing them into his bag. "My father will hear about this," he said, as he set up his cauldron near Harry and Neville, the only remaining available space.

Harry smirked quietly as he worked on his and Neville's potions, while glancing towards their teacher. Snape was quietly patrolling the classroom, offering advice here and there.

As he moved to the other side of the classroom, Seamus Finnigan, their fellow third year Gryffindor, leaned over to them. "Hey Harry? Did you hear? Black was spotted a bit south of here. They think he's maybe heading this way."

Harry blinked at that. "Is he mad?" He asked quietly. "Coming this way increases his chances of being captured or killed, doesn't it?"

Seamus shrugged as he moved back to his cauldron, while Draco smirked. "Thinking of catching Black single handed Potter? Want more fame?"

Harry snorted. "Please Malfoy. If you had the guts to do it that's something I'd expect from you."

Draco gained a mean smile. "I guess you'd much rather leave it to the Dementor's. If it were me I'd want revenge," he said.

Harry blinked. "Why would I want revenge?"

Draco's grin widened. "You mean you don't know? That's rich," he said, before returning to his cauldron.

Harry growled and moved towards Draco only to be stopped by Neville, who shook his head. "Not worth it mate. Not worth it."

When class ended and they had finished cleaning up their supplies and washing up, they joined Hermione as they headed towards their first ever Defense Against Dark Arts class. "What do you think Draco was on about?" Harry asked the pair. "He sounded like I should hate Sirius for some reason."

Neville shrugged. "I don't know. I think he really just wanted to try and rile you up. Or make you go and do something stupid like go after Sirius by yourself," he said.

Hermione nodded. "I'd just ignore him Harry. I doubt he actually had anything meaningful to say."

Harry nodded as they reached the DADA classroom and got out their books as they sat down. The rest of the class slowly began to filter into the class.

After the bell rang, their new DADA teacher entered. The man still was wearing patched robes and his brown hair clearly had dustings of gray in it. But he looked a lot healthier then he had on the train. He nodded to all of them.

"Please, put your books away. You won't need them for this class," he said with a smile. The students blinked before slowly putting their books away.

He smiled at them. "My name is Professor Remus Lupin, and I'm your new Defense Against Dark Arts teacher. Today's lesson will be a practical one. If you'll please follow me?" He asked.

The students, gripping their wands, followed him out of the classroom and down the halls. After several minutes, they found Peeves the Poltergeist stuffing gum into the keyhole of a broom cupboard. As Lupin approached, Peeves stopped and grinned a wicked grin, turning upside. "Loopy loopy Lupin! Loopy loopy Lupin!"

The students were stunned, as Peeves generally was respectful, to a degree, of the teachers. To see him disrespecting Professor Lupin was a shock.

Lupin just sighed quietly. "You should remove the gum Peeves. Filch won't be able to get at his brooms and mops."

Peeves just blew a raspberry and wiggled the toes of his long pointed shoes at him while floating upside down. Remus quietly sighed as he pulled out his wand and pointed it at Peeves, saying "_Waddiwasi_".

As he did, the chewing gum shot out of the lock and up one of Peeve's nostrils. The poltergeist started cursing as he righted himself and shot off, cursing the whole time.

The students cheered, as Lupin smiled and led them to the teacher's staff room, where he escorted them all in. As soon as they were all in, Lupin closed the door and approached a wardrobe at the back of the room that contained old robes and such. As he stood next to it, the wardrobe trembled.

"Don't worry," he told his students. "There's only a boggart in there."

Several of the students looked at him in fear, as he continued. "Boggarts prefer living in dark enclosed places. Cupboards, under beds, even a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday, and I asked Professor Dumbledore to leave it so that the third years could practice on it. And that's what we are going to do today. Now, who can tell me what a boggart is?" He asked.

Unsurprisingly, Hermione's hand went up first. When Lupin nodded to her, Hermione answered. "A boggart is a shape-shifter, which takes the form of what a person fears the most," she said.

Lupin nodded. "Excellent work. No one knows what a boggart actually looks like, since once they see it it's already transformed into what they fear the most," he said. "However, this means we also have a huge advantage. Can you tell me what that advantage is Harry?" He asked.

Harry blinked in surprise, before thinking about it. "…it's because right now, there are a lot of us present. So it wouldn't know what to transform into," he said.

Lupin nodded. "Exactly! If there is more than one person present, a boggart will become confused, trying to scare people. And that's when you move in to get rid of the boggart. The way to get rid of a boggart is simple. You get rid of it with laughter. Of course, it is hard to laugh when you're facing down your greatest fear. So, what you do is you force the boggart to take a form that is humorous utilizing a special charm called the _Riddikulus_ charm. May I have a volunteer to demonstrate?" He asked.

Everyone looked rather nervous, before Neville slowly moved forward. Lupin smiled. "Excellent. Now Neville. Would you mind sharing with us something that frightens you?" He asked.

Neville shuddered a bit before finally speaking. "W-Well….I….I'm afraid of Inferi," he whispered.

Many in the class shuddered at that, while a few, mostly the muggleborns, looked confused. Lupin nodded. "I see. Well that is a tough one to make funny, isn't it?"

Neville nodded. "I…I might have something," he said.

Lupin nodded. "Alright then. When I open that door, the boggart will come out. You'll need to focus on what you plan to do to make it seem humorous, and yell Riddikulus! Once you have, the boggart should transform, or do whatever it is you are planning. I want everyone else to do the same. As I call you forward, you'll take your turns. Now take a moment to think of what you fear the most, and what will counter it," he said.

Everyone quietly thought about what they would fear the most. Harry was torn between two images. One was of Lord Voldemort, returned to full power. But the other one was of a recent fear he had developed. Those Dementor's were targeting him. And worse, they were targeting his brother. An image of a Dementor, hovering over Travis, filled his head. He shook his mind, trying to clear it.

Lupin looked to them all, before turning to Neville. "Are you ready?"

Neville nodded, as Lupin turned to the wardrobe and waved his wand. The door opened and more the one person screamed. For stumbling out of the wardrobe was an Inferi, a walking corpse magically brought back to life. The gangly corpse saw Neville and began to stumble towards him.

Neville trembled in fear, before taking a deep breath and pointing his wand at the Inferi. "_Riddikulus_!"

The Inferi stumbled back, as a pink tutu appeared on it and it began spinning around like a ballerina. (1)

Almost immediately, everyone started to giggle. The scene was just too surreal not to laugh at.

Lupin grinned. "Excellent!" he said. "Parvati, forward!"

Parvati Patil, a girl of Indian heritage, stepped forward. The dancing Inferi was replaced by a bloodstained bandaged mummy, who turned and shuffled towards her, arms rising. That is until Parvati's spell made a bandage around its leg unravel, tripping the corpse and causing it's head to fall off.

Seamus came up next, and the boggart became a banshee, who prepared to unleash her terrifying howl until Seamus's charm took away her voice. Dean Thomas came next, resulting in a giant severed hand that was countered by being trapped in a mouse trap.

Ron's was amongst the worst, as it turned into a giant spider. Neville and Harry both shuddered, remembering when last year they had gone into the Forbidden Forest seeking out giant spiders on advice from Hagrid in order to learn more about the Chamber of Secrets.

Ron seemed frozen as the giant spider advanced on him, only to finally utter "_R-R-R-Riddikulus!_" The giant spider's feet suddenly had roller-skates attached, and the whole thing began to slip and slide, heading straight to Harry. Harry tensed, as he saw it turn to him. He raised his wand, only to be interrupted by Lupin appearing in front of him.

The spider was replaced by a hovering orb. Harry blinked, as it almost looked like the moon. If that was so, why would Professor Lupin be scared of the moon?

It didn't matter, as with a lazy cry of '_Riddikulus_', the moon or orb or whatever it was became a balloon that was losing its air, before it retreated into the cupboard. With a wave of his wand, Lupin locked the cupboard up again.

"Excellent work everyone! Well done everyone!" He said. "So five points to everyone who faced the boggart and five to Harry and Hermione for answering the questions. Now homework. Please read the chapter on boggarts, and summarize it, to be turned in on Monday. Dismissed!" He said with a grin.

The class began to file out, as they talked excitedly about their boggarts. Harry though seemed disappointed. Why had Lupin stepped in like that? Was it because of what happened on the train? Or for another reason.

Hermione also was disappointed. "I wanted to take a crack at the boggart," she said, pouting.

Neville chuckled. "What would yours have been? A homework that got only 8 out of 10?" He asked. Hermione just glared at her.

Harry shook his thoughts off. Whatever the reason was, he didn't have to go through possibly seeing his brother or anyone else being attacked by a Dementor. And for now, that was good enough for him. He smiled as he joined his friends as they returned to the Gryffindor tower.

* * *

**And here we go! I'm rather surprised I got this out so quickly. I expected it would take longer.**

**I hope you all like the explanation for Merlin's spell book, as well as the history between Dementor's and Battle Mages. Rest assured, that little tidbit will be cropping up again in later years.**

**And I also hope you all like my substitute for Neville's fear. Considering Neville was more confident and Snape had become a good person, I felt that a new fear for Neville was needed. And of the two I could think of, this one worked better in my mind.**

**1. For those of you who don't recognize this, it's tribute to Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. When you come across Re-Dead's (zombie like enemies) and you wear one of the various undead based masks in the game, the Re-Deads will begin to dance instead of attacking you. Leaving them wide open for slaughter.**

**Please read and review!**


	4. Halloween Troubles

**I'm glad so many of you liked my idea with Merlin's Grimoire, as well as the history behind Dementor's and Battle Mages. I was nervous you all wouldn't enjoy the ideas.**

**But now it's time to move on to the rest of the school year! **

**On with the chapter!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. It is the property of its creator, J.K. Rowling.

* * *

**Chapter 4**

**Halloween Troubles**

As it would turn out, Harry soon had quite a bit to think about, to distract him from Dementors and Merlin's Grimoire. As September continued on and the students re-adjusted to school life, or became accustomed to school life in the case of the first years, the classes began to pick up a bit. Harry often found his evenings busy with studying how to evade or defeat such creatures as the bloodthirsty Red Caps, or quizzing Hermione on different basic runes and their uses. As such, he found little time to worry about Dementors or the Grimoire.

Another distraction came into Harry's life as October began. The Quidditch Season had begun again, and Oliver Wood, the Seventh Year captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, was eager to begin training for the upcoming season.

Quidditch was one of the main sports of the Wizarding World. It was played with two teams, each made up of seven players. Three of them were known as Chasers, whose job was to get a large red ball known as the Quaffle through one of the opposing team's three goal hoops and thus earn their team ten points. Each team also had a Keeper, who acted as a goalie and tried to stop the Quaffle from entering their goal hoops.

There were also two Beaters, players who had small bats. Their job was to hit two magically enchanted balls called Bludgers. The Bludgers would fly around trying to knock players off their brooms, while the beaters would try to hit them towards the other team's players.

The final member of the team was the Seeker. The Seeker's job was to fly around the field, looking for a tiny gold flying ball known as the Golden Snitch. Whichever Seeker caught the Snitch would earn their team one hundred and fifty points, and end the match.

It was the first Thursday evening of October, when Wood called a team meeting. The Seventh Year watched as the other members of the team filed into the locker room on the edge of the Quidditch Field.

Besides Harry, who was the team's Seeker, there were also Fred and George Wesley, the Fifth Year Beater's for the team. The Chasers were made up of Katie Bell, Alicia Spinnet, and Angelina Johnson, the former being in her Fourth Year while the other two were both Fifth Years.

Oliver nodded to them all as they took seats. "Alright men and women. This is my final year as team Captain. And I have to say, I couldn't be more proud of this team. We've had to struggle since Charlie Weasley left us, but since then, we've come together, and now are the two time reigning Quidditch Champions of Hogwarts. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'd like to make it three years before I leave Hogwarts."

As the others clapped and cheered, Oliver continued. "This means that we can't get soft. The other teams will be gunning to try and take the cup away from us, so we'll have to train even harder to hold onto it. But I know that no matter the odds, we can pull through and show them why we're the best team here at Hogwarts!"

As another round of cheers and applause echoed through the locker room, Oliver nodded. "Before we begin though, I want to run an idea by you all. As we've seen in the past couple years, we've had some close calls. Most of them revolving around our Seeker, Harry. In his First Year, he almost didn't make the Final Match, due to his little adventure with the Philosopher's Stone. And in his Second Year, there was that incident with the enchanted Bludger, and that dimwit Lockhart removing all his bones. That's why I think it would be a good idea if we start training some reserve players, in case the worst happens. What do you all think of that?"

The others looked at each other, before nodding. "Sounds good. It might help out in case any of us get into trouble with the teachers too," Angelina said, while eyeing the Weasley twins. In response, the prankster duo innocently whistled and looked at the ceiling.

Oliver chuckled softly. "Alright. I'll set up an announcement in Common Room. We might need to get some decent brooms, in case any of our reserve players don't have one or can't afford one," he said.

Harry bit his lip. He had a small fortune in his vaults at Gringotts, the Goblin bank. He had barely put a dent into it with his school supplies so far. He could maybe help purchase some brooms for the teams reserve players, if need be. He decided to bring it up if need be, when the time came.

Oliver nodded. "Alright then! With that out of the way, let's begin training!"

And train they did. They Gryffindor team practiced hard in both good and bad weather. Oliver put up an announcement about recruiting reserve players, setting the date for a Saturday in the middle of the month.

The day was a cool October morning, as the Gryffindor team was gathered on the Quidditch Pitch. In front of them were several Gryffindor students, who were present to try out for reserve player spots. Harry was rather surprised to actually see Ron and Ginny amongst the gathered hopefuls. Fred and George had started to tease Ron, but a glare from Ginny had stopped them from doing the same to her. The twins knew from personal experience not to tease Ginny, especially when she was really nervous.

Oliver held up his hands. "Alright everyone! Listen up! First off, I want to thank everyone for coming out here, and I'm glad to see so many of you are ready and willing to help out your team. Now we're going to test each of the positions one at a time, so when we begin try outs for a position you're interested in, please step forward! First off will be the Chasers!"

A fair majority of those present stepped forward, including Ginny. Most of them were holding their own brooms, a mixture of the newest or relatively new Cleansweep broom series, with a few Nimbuses here and there. However several were using the old school brooms.

Oliver nodded as he flew up to the Keeper's position. The first test was having the prospective Reserve Chasers try to score off of him. One by one they flew up, doing their best to score as Oliver defended. Several missed horribly, their nerves throwing off their aim. A few were dead on target, but were thrown too slowly, allowing Oliver to easily block them.

However, Dean Thomas, Ginny Weasley, a second year named Demelza Robins, and a pair of Fifth Year students all managed to score goals. When given a second shot, the five of them each scored again, as well as a Second Year witch who managed to calm her nerves and make a goal.

Oliver nodded to those six. "Alright then. Now we'll test your abilities to pass the Quaffle to each other. During a match, you'll need to be able to pass to your teammates fast and effectively, as well as hold onto the Quaffle. Fred, George. I want you two to use the spare Quaffles as Bludgers, to test their ability to dodge and such," he said, with the two beaters nodding.

It soon became apparent that the two Fifth Year students, while good at scoring, were not as good at passing. They tended to hog the Quaffle to themselves, instead of passing it to the others. The Second Year witch was better at passing and catching, but tended to become focused on that, and wasn't able to dodge the 'Bludgers'. In the end, it became obvious that Dean Thomas, Ginny Weasley, and Demelza Robins were the best choices for the Reserve Chasers.

Afterwards, Oliver called up the Keepers. Here was where Ron stepped forward, seeming very nervous.

The test for the keepers was simple. They each flew up to the goal posts, and had to try and stop Alicia, Angelina, and Katie from scoring.

At first it was a massacre. Five Keeper hopefuls were each unable to come close to stopping the three Chasers. It wasn't until a Fourth year named Cormac McLaggen tried out that someone was able to finally stop them. He managed to stop both Alicia and Katie's attempts, but Angelina feinted on him, leading him to one goal post only to score in another.

When Ron's turn came, he looked positively green, and his knees were knocking together. He flew up to the goal posts and hovered there, trembling a bit.

Angelina went first, streaking towards him. Ron nervously gripped his broom, watching her, as she approached. She looked like she was heading towards the left goalpost, and Ron started to drift that way. But she then rolled right and threw at the middle one. Ron's eyes widened as he quickly reached out, his fingers barely grazing the Quaffle before it flew through the goal post.

Ron slumped on his broom, before straightening as Katie started to come in. He bit his lip, watching her intently as she zigged back and forth towards him. Katie suddenly shot at the right goal post and threw the Quaffle.

Ron lunged for it, and this time actually managed to smack it away, getting a cheer from several of the others watching. Ron grinned a bit, his posture straightening more. That was when Alicia came zooming in.

With a mighty throw, Alicia threw the Quaffle at the left goal post. Ron shot towards it, and managed to grab it out of the air, grinning happily as he held it up amidst cheers from those watching.

Oliver nodded approvingly. "Not bad! Weasley, McLaggen! We'll talk things out in a team meeting to let you know who we choose, so stick around after try outs!"

The two of them nodded, as they the other Keeper hopefuls wistfully joined the group of spectators.

Next up was the Beater tryouts. Sadly though, no one stepped forward at all. So that left only one position.

Harry watched as Oliver called out for any Seeker hopefuls, and was surprised when Ginny step forward. "You want to try out for Seeker too?" He asked, considering she was already pretty much guaranteed a Reserve Chaser position.

She blushed a bit but smiled. "Well considering your track record, I'm more likely to get to play Seeker then Chaser," she said, causing Harry to pout a bit.

There was only one other person trying out for Seeker, Colin Creevey. He eagerly waved at Harry, before he and Ginny took to the skies on their brooms.

Oliver nodded, as he released the Golden Snitch. The two of them immediately began circling the field, scanning for the small golden ball.

It took them roughly ten minutes, before Ginny saw the Snitch, and made a dive for it. Colin saw her dive and went after her, hoping to overtake her. They both were riding school brooms, so neither had an advantage there. But Ginny not only had a head start, she was also smaller and lighter. With a shout of victory, she snatched the ball up first and rose up, holding it above her head.

Oliver nodded. "Alright! Nice work there Ginny! But we'll need to do it a couple more times to make sure it wasn't just luck. Bring it in!"

The two of them landed, and Oliver launched the Snitch again, followed by them. They both spent several minutes searching for it, before Colin let out a yell and dived. Ginny was unfortunately too far away this time, as Colin snatched up the Snitch, grinning.

They both readied themselves for a third run. This time both of them circled the pitch, eyes scanning for the Snitch. It took five minutes, before they both dived at the same time, from opposite ends of the Quidditch field. They both raced towards the Snitch, and towards each other. To those born in the Muggle world, it almost seemed like they were playing a game of Chicken.

In the end, Colin lost his nerve and pulled up, just before Ginny grabbed up the Snitch and raised her arm in success. The crowd cheered as she landed, handing Oliver the Snitch.

Oliver grinned as he took it. "Well done Ginny! I think we've found our reserve Seeker! Good try Colin," He said, as Colin landed and nodded a bit dejectedly, before congratulating Ginny.

Oliver smiled. "Alright then! To those of you who tried out, we want to thank you all. And don't be discouraged, there's always next year! To those of you, who made it, please stick around. We're going to discuss who to make Reserve Keeper, and then talk to you all about team practices," he said.

He nodded to the rest of the team, and they huddled up. "Alright. We've got two candidates for Keeper. I want your opinions on both of them," he said.

Angelina spoke up first. "Cormac seems to be more confident in his skills. He was pretty good in stopping Alicia and Katie." Both of the other Chasers nodded.

George snorted. "You mean overconfident. I've heard him talking about how he's probably the best player in the school, and criticizing every little mistake he's seen the team do in the past couple of years. Ron may not be as confident, but you saw him out there. He actually almost stopped your attempt as well Angelina. If anything, I'd say Ron's a better choice. And that's not just my opinion as his brother." Fred gave a nod, showing he was backing up his brother's statement.

Harry sighed as they all looked to him. "It's a tough choice. Ron does seem to have a confidence issue that could affect his playing, especially against a team like Slytherin. But at the same time, he did seem to give us just a little bit more than Cormac. Not to mention it's potentially better to have someone who's under confident, instead of someone who's overconfident. An under confident person at least can admit their mistakes and ask for help."

Oliver nodded quietly, as he looked at the two Keeper hopefuls. He seemed to be sizing them both up, before looking back at the team. "Alright. We'll go with Ron," he said. "Besides, Quidditch seems to run through most of their blood," he said with a grin, as Ron and George grinned as well.

Oliver went over to the pair of them. "Okay. Cormac, Ron, you both did great out there. And after careful consideration, we've decided that the Reserve Keeper will be….Ron Weasley."

Ron's eyes went wide, as his mouth dropped open in surprise. Cormac blinked, before his eyes narrowed. "How could you choose him over me?!

Oliver looked at Cormac. "You both were roughly equal in your abilities," he said. "However Ron showed us just a little bit more by almost stopping Angelina's throw, something you completely failed to do. Not only that, but you are overconfident in your abilities. That could lead to serious trouble with team dynamics. While Ron may have confidence issues, they can be worked on, and won't hurt the team. That is why we've chosen Ron."

Cormac just snorted before turning and walking away, while Ron just stood there, stunned. It wasn't until his brothers slapped him on the back that he awoke from his stunned silence.

Oliver turned to the other Reserve Players. "Alright everyone, listen up! You'll all be joining us for Team practices from now on. Since we almost have enough players to form a second team, we'll be holding 'mock' Quidditch matches each training practice. Ginny Weasley, you'll play with the Chasers through most of the training, and then we'll work on your Seeker training afterwards. If anyone has any problems with homework and club schedules, let me know and we'll see what we can do, alright?"

As they all nodded, he grinned. "Alright then! Welcome to the Gryffindor Quidditch Team!"

Thirteen voices let up a cheer, as the new Gryffindor Quidditch Players were welcomed to the team.

_October 31__st_

Harry sighed a bit wistfully, as he stood in the Entrance Hall, watching Neville and Hermione join the throngs of Third and higher Year students stream out of the school and down towards the gates of Hogwarts. About a week ago, a notice went up on the bulletin announcing the first Hogsmeade weekend visit for students was on Halloween weekend. Neville and Hermione both had been eager to visit, but had told Harry they were willing to stay if he wanted them to, due to him not being able to go. Harry however told them to go and enjoy it.

He had seen them off at the Entrance Hall, and now stared out at the small village in the distance. Even though he knew the reasons he wasn't allowed to go, at least for this year, he still felt a little jealous and frustrated. Shaking his head, he started to head off to the library. Ginny would be there, and the two of them had decided to work on their homework together while Neville and Hermione headed out to have some fun.

As he headed towards the library, his mind wandered to some recent trouble that had been brewing in the Gryffindor Tower, between Ron and Hermione.

Apparently, Hermione's cat Crookshanks was repeatedly going after Ron's pet rat Scabbers. He had already attacked Ron's bag once when Scabbers was sleeping inside of it, and according to Neville, there had been another incident where Ron had been carrying Scabbers in his shirt pocket, and Crookshanks had gone after the rat there too. This had made Ron furious at Hermione, blaming her and her cat for the reason why his pet rat was losing weight and falling ill. Indeed, when Harry had seen the rat, it looked like it was becoming rather skinny for a normal rat, and a few clumps of hair were missing from its body.

According to Ginny though, Scabbers had been feeling ill for a while now, since they had been in Egypt and thus before Hermione even had gotten Crookshanks. Scabbers had actually belonged to his older brother Percy, and had been part of the family for twelve years now. Most common garden rats like Scabbers only lived for two or three years. So it was possible that Scabbers, who had lived far beyond the normal life span of a common garden rat, was finally starting to succumb to age.

Harry's thoughts were interrupted by a door he was passing opening up and the occupant of the room of said door looking out. "Harry?" Professor Lupin asked, blinking. "What are you doing here?"

Harry turned to the Professor. "Oh, I was heading to the library. I just saw Neville and Hermione off to Hogsmeade," he said.

Lupin nodded. "Ahh, I see. Well would you like to come in for a cup of tea? Perhaps you'd like to take a look at the Grindylow I received for our next lesson," he said.

Harry blinked. "A what?" He asked, as he followed him inside the office.

The office was actually rather spartan in its décor. There was a desk for Lupin to work at, and a couple bookshelves with books. In one corner there was a rather large tank filled with water and seaweed in one of the corners. Inside was a sickly green creature with horns and a fish like tail. Instead of fins though it had hands with long spindly fingers.

"It's a water demon," Lupin elaborated. "It has extremely strong but brittle fingers. Breaking them is the key to defeating it."

Harry nodded as the Grindylow smacked against the glass, then dove into the weeds, hiding. Harry slowly sat down, as Lupin began to grab some tea bags and start up a teakettle with a prod from his wand. He then sat down as well, watching Harry. "So Harry….you seemed to be deep in thought when you were walking by my office. May I ask what about?"

Harry sighed quietly. "Nothing serious, Professor Lupin. Just some problems involving my friends," he said, before blinking as a thought crossed his mind. "May I ask you something though?" He asked.

When Lupin nodded, Harry continued. "That first lesson, with the Boggart. Why did you stop me from facing it?" He asked softly.

Lupin's eyes widened. "Well Harry, I thought the reason would be obvious. I believed that if you faced the boggart, it would have become Lord Voldemort. Something I don't think the rest of the class was ready to see."

Harry blinked. "Actually…while I was thinking of that, I was also…I was thinking of the Dementors," he said softly.

Lupin nodded a bit. "I see. I suppose I can understand that. Professor Dumbledore informed the faculty of you and your brother's potential to be targeted by the Dementors. So it is understandable that you would be afraid of them."

Harry looked down at the cup of tea Lupin had poured for him. "Professor…do you…do you think that if you had given me a chance, I could have handled the boggart?"

Lupin smiled quietly. "Perhaps. I do not think a boggart Dementor would attack you the way a normal Dementor would. But I don't want you to think I have no faith in your abilities. As you've shown when dealing with the other creatures we've been facing, you are a skilled and courageous. Perhaps I was hasty in not allowing you a chance to fight it."

Harry smiled at that, before another thought crossed his mind. "Professor, may I ask what your boggart was? It looked like it was a moon," he said.

Lupin grew very serious at that point, but before he could answer, there was a knock at the door, followed by it opening and Snape entering. He blinked as he saw Harry. "Mr. Potter," he said evenly, before turning to Lupin. "I finished your potion, Lupin. There's a whole cauldron full if you need more," he said, as he set a goblet down filled with a smoking potion. Harry blinked as he stared at it, while Lupin thanks Snape.

As the Potions Professor left, Lupin picked up the goblet. "I've been feeling a bit under the weather, and Professor Snape was most generous in making this potion for me," he explained, as he took a sip from the goblet, and shuddered, making a face. "Not exactly the best tasting potion, but it certainly helps," he said, as he kept drinking it.

Harry blinked. "May I ask what exactly ails you? Perhaps my father or mother could find a potion known to Mages that could help out more?"

Lupin chuckled softly. "Thank you for the offer, but I wouldn't want to trouble them," he said, as he finished it off. "Now, I'm sure you had plans, before I interrupted you and called you in here," he said with a smile.

Harry nodded quietly as he finished off his tea and stood up. "Thank you for the tea, Professor Lupin," he said, as he headed off.

As he headed towards the library, his mind turned to what had just happened. What was that potion Snape had given Lupin? What sickness could possibly require the services of a Potion Master, and not a doctor or nurse? Puzzled, Harry decided to talk to Hermione about it later. For now, his thoughts turned towards his homework.

As he entered the library, he found Ginny waiting for him at one of the tables. She raised an eyebrow at him. "You're late," she said.

Harry chuckled softly. "Sorry. Professor Lupin invited me into his office to show me the next creature we'll be dealing with and offered me some tea. So, what shall we work on first?"

Ginny just grinned as she pulled out her Defense Against Dark Arts textbook. "Well since you were talking to Professor Lupin, let's start with that," she said.

They spent the next few hours working on their homework, talking and joking a bit. Harry grinned softly at one point as he glanced at Ginny. She was definitely starting to become someone very different from that shy girl sitting in the corner last year, who would blush and stutter every time he came near. She still did blush and stutter sometimes, but she was also opening up more as she spent more time around him. He chuckled as she told him about how Ron got his fear of spiders. Apparently he had stolen and broken Fred or George's toy broom when they were younger. And in retaliation, the twins had transfigured Ron's stuffed bear into a spider while he was holding it. It traumatized him for life.

Harry just grinned and shook his head as she finished telling the story, when Hermione and Neville showed up, both grinning and carrying several bags. Harry waved them over, smiling. "Have fun?" He asked them with a grin.

They both nodded with a grin. "Oh it was amazing," Hermione said as she sat down. "The village just looks incredible, and it has such a fascinating history. And it's just so fascinating seeing a magical village."

Neville grinned. "The stores were great too. Honeyduke's had all these incredible candies and desserts. So many you wouldn't believe. And Zonko's, the magical joke shop, was full of all kinds of gags and pranks and stuff. I swear Fred and George stayed in there the entire time we were down there," he said with a grin.

Hermione picked up then. "And then we went to the Three Broomsticks. It's this little friendly tavern, where we had this delicious foamy drink called Butterbeer. Just warms you right up," she said.

And on and on they went, describing what they had done. Harry just grinned, even as a small part of him felt a bit jealous. He really wished he could have gone down to the village. But he shook it from his mind, wanting to be happy for his friends. "Well sounds like it was quite an adventure," he said.

Hermione just smiled. "So what did you two do while we were gone?"

Ginny smiled. "Oh just mostly sat here and talked and worked," she said. "Although Harry had a nice little chat with professor Lupin," she said.

They both looked at Harry, who nodded. "He wanted to show me the next creature we'll be studying. But something rather interesting happened. Professor Snape came in with a potion for Professor Lupin. Lupin said he wasn't feeling well, and the potion was the only thing that helped. I just found it rather curious, that he might be sick with something that required the services of a potion master and not a healer."

Hermione blinked. "Another mystery? Harry, don't you think we've had enough after two years?" She asked jokingly. "Still, it does sound intriguing. Could you describe it for me? Maybe I can find it in one of the Potion books?"

Harry nodded. "Sure. The potion was smoking and even after he drank it, the goblet was still smoking. And it was a light pale dull green in color." (1)

Hermione nodded. "I'll take a look for it then. For now, we should head back to the Common Room. It's almost time for the Halloween Feast," she said with a grin.

Harry and Ginny both eagerly packed up their things and the quartet headed back to the Gryffindor Tower to drop off their things and freshen up.

Within the hour, the populace of Hogwarts was filling up the great Hall, which was festooned with the traditional floating Jack-O-Lanterns, vivid orange streamers, and live bats. The happy chatter students filled the halls as they ate. Harry blinked when he saw Ginny wave to a blonde girl over at the Ravenclaw table, who faintly waved back. She had a rather dazed look on her face.

"Who's that?" he asked her, causing her to blink.

"Oh that's Luna Lovegood. She lives not too far from my family, and me and her played together sometimes when we were younger. She became a bit odd after her…well…after her mother died. She's a lot of fun to hang out with, even when she doesn't make any sense. But a lot of her House Mates thinks she's weird and so they keep their distance from her," she explained.

Harry frowned a bit at that. "So she doesn't have that many friends?" When Ginny shook her head, Harry smiled. "Well perhaps she'd like to join us sometime, when we're out wandering the grounds, or working in the library?"

Ginny grinned. "R-Really? You wouldn't mind?"

Harry grinned. "She's your friend Ginny. You don't really need my permission to have her join us."

Ginny just blushed but smiled happily. "Thanks Harry. I'll be sure to invite her next time," she said, as she went back to eating her food.

Eventually, as the evening wound down, the ghosts of Hogwarts concluded the Halloween Feast with a show of coordinated aerial gliding. Nearly Headless Nick then performed a re-enactment of his botched beheading, receiving applause after he finished.

The students slowly began to file out, stuffed with food and sleepy. Harry and his friends headed up the stairs towards the Gryffindor Tower, eager to get a good night's sleep.

However, they found their path blocked by a crowd outside the portrait of the Fat Lady. Harry blinked in surprise. "What's going on?" He asked, trying to see past people. The Fat Lady's portrait was blocked from view by the crowd.

"You think someone's wrong with the Fat Lady?" Neville asked.

At that moment, Percy Weasley strolled forward. "Please move, Head boy coming through! What is the meaning of this hold up?!" He asked, as he moved through the crowd, only to stop. Then his voice broke through the crowd. "Someone get Professor Dumbledore. NOW!"

As one of the older students rushed off, Ginny blinked. "This doesn't sound good," she said.

A few minutes later, Dumbledore came striding up, followed by McGonagall. The students parted as the two teachers approached, allowing Harry and the others a chance to see what was going on. Hermione gasped as Harry felt his heart drop.

The Fat Lady wasn't in her portrait, more than likely due to the fact that said portrait was a mess. It had been slashed to pieces, with strips and chunks littering the floor.

Professor Dumbledore started at the portrait for a few moments, before speaking to McGonagall. "Minerva, find Filch and tell him to start searching for the Fat Lady immediately. We must find her and find out what happened here," he said.

"That will be tough, Mister Headmaster!" A voice cackled, as Peeves the Poltergeist appeared above them all. The grin on his face faded though when he saw the cold look on Dumbledore's face.

"What do you mean Peeves?" The Headmaster asked calmly. But the look on his face, and the slight edge in his voice told the poltergeist he meant business.

Peeves tone changed from his usual maniacal crackle to a more oily tone. "I saw her running through a landscape portrait on the Fourth Floor, going from tree to tree. Terrible mess she is. She's ashamed of being seen."

Dumbledore nodded quietly. "And did you see what happened? Or manage to hear from her who did this to her?"

Peeves nodded. "Oh yes Headmaster. Quite a temper, the one who did it. He got very angry when she wouldn't let him in. Nasty temper, that Sirius Black."

Instantly the students burst into loud chatter and yells, until a blast from Dumbledore's wand silenced them all. "Prefects, HeadBoy. Take the Gryffindor students back to the Great Hall and stay there. No one leaves unless it's an emergency. Go!"

In an instant, the students were being herded back down the hallway. And as they were, all Harry could do was feel a cold sweat break out as the realization sank in. Sirius Black had somehow entered Hogwarts.

* * *

**Finally! I finally got this piece of crap chapter done!**

**I'm sorry for the long wait folks. A mixture of job searching and just crappy motivation kept me from getting this stupid chapter done. But here it is, finally done!**

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and the changes I threw in here and there. But if not, I understand. I am a little unsatisfied with this chapter myself. But rest assured, things will be better next chapter…I hope. *bites fingernails in a fit of nerves***

**Again, sorry for the long wait!**

**1. They never describe what the Potion looks like exactly, beyond that it smokes faintly. So I took some creative liberties. This potion just sounded like a pale dull green to me. ^.^;**

**Please review. **


	5. Rising Danger

**It's time for another chapter in the world of Harry Potter: Battle Mage of Hogwarts! *Thunder and lightning crash dramatically around me***

**So, last time Sirius Black broke into the castle, cut up the Fat Lady Portrait, and left. And now, it's time for one of my least favorite chapters of the 3****rd**** Year. But we must do it, sadly. *Sad face***

**So, to quote William Shakespeare and Henry the Fifth: "One More unto the breach, dear friends, once more"**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Henry the Fifth. They are the property of J. K. Rowling and William Shakespeare.

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Rising Danger**

The entirety of Gryffindor House was quickly escorted down to the Great Hall, where the tables had vanished and Dumbledore conjured hundreds of sleeping bags. As the Gryffindor's got settled in, the other houses were soon escorted in as well.

Once all of them were present, Dumbledore spoke up. "There has been an emergency. For the safety of all students, you will stay here tonight. Do not leave the Great Hall without an escort. Prefects, I wish for you to guard the entrances in shifts, and I am leaving the Head Boy and Head Girl in charge. All other faculty will begin a search of the castle immediately."

Almost as soon as Dumbledore and the teachers were gone, the Great Hall erupted into conversation, as the Gryffindor's informed everyone else what had happened. Soon wild rumors were spreading about how Sirius Black could have possibly snuck into the castle. They ranged from flying in on broomstick, to sneaking in using a disguise, to appearing out of thin air using Apparition, the wizards form of teleportation. Hermione almost immediately began shooting down those theories, pointing out that Hogwarts was protected by anti-Apparition wards, and that no disguise would have fooled the Dementors. And it was unlikely he could fly in without someone seeing him.

Harry's thoughts though were not on how Sirius Black had snuck in. But rather why Sirius had headed straight for the Gryffindor Tower? He must have known that no matter what, The Fat Lady would not have let him in at all. So why go there? Why not wait in the halls somewhere and ambush him?

The fact that Black had tried to get into the Tower just kept sticking in Harry's mind. It made no sense, if Black was after him. For the first time, he wondered if maybe Black was up to something else? He sighed, lying on his side as Percy shouted at everyone to go to sleep. Just something about what had happened didn't seem right.

The next few days were a flurry of activity. The Fat Lady's ruined portrait was replaced with one of a knight named Sir Cadogan, and his fat gray pony. Sir Cadogan quickly became hated by the entirety of the House, as he would constantly challenge people to duels, or think up incredibly complicated passwords.

Harry also found himself drawing a lot of attention now from the faculty. Whenever he would head to his classes, one of the teachers seemed to be in the same hallway, travelling in the same direction as him. He had also noticed Percy Weasley was trying to unobtrusively follow him. According to Ginny, Mrs. Weasley had asked Percy to do this, and her as well.

McGonagall had also called Harry to her office to warn him that Sirius black was more than likely coming after him, and to also inform Harry that from now on, Madame Hooch would be attending the Gryffindor's evening Quidditch practices to keep an eye on him.

The Battle Mages had also offered their own worries after hearing of the break in. They offered the services of a small group of their more senior Battle Mages to act as additional security, but with the Dementors still patrolling the outer grounds, it was deemed not a wise idea. The chances of a conflict arising were too great. The Dementors already were agitated enough, knowing there were two young Battle Mages so close.

The weather steadily began to worsen as the first Quidditch Match drew near. For Harry and the regular members of the team, practicing in bad weather was nothing new. But for the reserve players, it was a trying experience, getting use to flying in such horrible weather. Their spirits were brightened though, by a generous, 'anonymous' gift. Three top of the line Cleansweep brooms and a Nimbus 2000 had been anonymously donated to the Gryffindor team for the reserve players. Ron, Demelza, and Dean were given the Cleansweeps, while Ginny, being both a reserve Chaser and Seeker, got the faster Nimbus. None of them had seen the small grin on Harry's face when they found the brooms.

However, bad news arose in their final training session on the Thursday before the Saturday match.

"We're not going to be playing against Slytherin!" Oliver said, having just come from a small conference with Madame Hooch. "They're claiming that Malfoy's arm is still messed up!"

Angelina blinked. "But how can they claim that? Madame Pomfrey gave him a clean bill of health!"

Oliver sighed. "Apparently one of the doctors at St. Mungo's sent a note claiming there was internal damage that requires 'intensive operation' to heal. It's just an excuse not to play us in the bad weather. We'll be playing Hufflepuff instead!"

The rest of the team glanced at each other. That wasn't good news. Hufflepuff had a different playing style from their team. Slytherin tended to be very aggressive, utilizing cheating and foul play to gain the upper hand. Hufflepuff though had a team that had perhaps the best teamwork of all. What they lacked in skills, they made up for in trust and co-ordination. So far Gryffindor's team had been training to counter Slytherin's cheating. They were unprepared to deal with the teamwork of Hufflepuff.

Fred spoke up for them. "Well this definitely is a sticky situation. But we'll handle it Oliver. Don't worry," he said. The others nodded.

Oliver shook his head. "We can't relax! Slytherin is trying to play us, and if we don't handle this properly, they'll win the House Cup! We can't let them get away with this!" he said, looking a bit manic.

Harry put a hand on Oliver's shoulder. "Oliver, calm down. We can't stress out now. That's exactly what they want," he said.

Oliver looked at Harry, before taking a deep breath. "Okay….okay you're right," he said quietly. "Let's do what we can to get ready for Saturday. Beaters, Chasers, start working on teamwork drills and disruption drills," he said. "We'll show Slytherin and Hogwarts why we're the reigning champs!"

With renewed vigor, the team set to training, determined to win Saturday's match.

_The Next Day_

Harry cursed a bit as he rushed towards his DADA class. Oliver had tried to give him some tips after his last class on how to deal with Hufflepuff's Seeker and Team captain, Cedric Diggory. The 6th Year Hufflepuff was tall and a bit muscular, which was unusual for Seekers. But in the horrible weather predicted for the match tomorrow, it would be an advantage. He wouldn't be buffeted by the winds as badly as Harry would.

However, Oliver's tips had gone a bit long, and Harry was almost late for class. He managed to slip inside the classroom mere seconds before the bell rang.

"Cutting it a little close there, Mr. Potter," came the voice of the Professor at the head of the classroom. But it wasn't Professor Lupin's voice. It was Snape's. Harry blinked in surprise.

"Professor Snape?" He asked in confusion.

Snape sighed. "Professor Lupin is unfortunately sick, and could not attend to his classes. I am substituting for him. Please sit," he said.

As Harry did so, Professor Snape pulled out the lesson guide Lupin had been following. "I see that you have already covered several dangerous creatures that you may or may not encounter during your travels. Professor Lupin writes here that the next creature you would be studying is Hinky-Punks. However, he also informed me that since the Hinky Punk he sent for has not yet arrived, that I could choose a creature for you all to study. As such, I feel it best if today, we cover a creature that you are rather likely to encounter, and is far more dangerous. Today, we'll be studying werewolves," he said.

Everyone murmured at that, a bit confused by his choice. Hermione looked like she wished to say something, but ended up keeping her mouth closed.

Professor Snape nodded as he continued. "To start with, can anyone tell me what the difference is between a normal wolf and a werewolf?" He asked.

Only a couple hands went up, and Professor Snape blinked before nodding to Hermione. "Miss Granger?"

"There are three main distinctive differences between a normal wolf and a werewolf," she answered. "The first is that the pupils are more of a slit shape, as well as the eyes generally being sickly yellow or pale blue in color. The second is the shape of the snout, which is shorter and stockier then a normal wolf snout. The last difference is a tufted tail," she answered.

Snape nodded. "Correct on all counts Miss Granger. Five points to Gryffindor," he said, though one could see he was not entirely used to saying the 'to' part of that phrase.

The rest of the class was spent discussing the symptoms and history of lycanthropy, with the students taking notes. As class was about to end, Snape gave them a homework assignment.

"Your homework is to research the history of lycanthropy, and write a report about it, to be done on two rolls of parchment. It does not have to completely fill both rolls," he said. "They are to be turned in Monday."

As the students grumbled or nodded at this, the bell rang, signaling the end of class. As the students headed out, Harry was thinking a bit. When Hermione and Neville joined him, he glanced at them.

"I wonder why he decided to teach us about werewolves," Harry thought out loud as he walked with them. "I mean, it is important to learn about them, but it seems rather… weird that he would cover a monster we're not supposed to see till the end of the book."

Neville nodded in agreement, but Hermione seemed distracted, as she was looking through a book she had. She hadn't seemed to absorbed with what she was reading, until Harry poked her shoulder. "W-what?" She asked, looking up.

"What are you reading?" He asked.

Hermione shook her head. "Sorry, I've been busy trying to find that potion Professor Snape gave Professor Lupin. I haven't been able to find it anywhere so far. I'm thinking maybe it's a more recent potion, maybe only a year or two old."

Harry nodded in thought. "If that's the case, we'll need to possibly talk to Professor Snape. And he may not tell us about it," he said.

Hermione grinned. "Well that or maybe I can find something during Christmas break. Of course, I'll need to convince my parents to take me to Diagon Alley," she said. "For now though, let's worry about this homework."

Neville glanced outside at the pouring rain and strong wind. "I'm more worried about the match tomorrow. You think you'll be okay Harry?"

Harry also glanced at the weather. "Well, it'll definitely be interesting," he commented. "I think I'll be okay though. Hopefully, we'll be able to win."

As it turned out though, the weather steadily got worse. By the time of the match, the rain was pouring down like a waterfall. The eager crowds gathered in the stands huddled under cloaks and umbrellas, as they waited for the teams to take the field.

Oliver was giving the Gryffindor Quidditch team last minute instructions, before they staggered onto the field as the wind blew them almost sideways. Thunder rolled over head, and the occasional bolt of lightning streaked across the sky.

The two teams met in the center of the field, where after Oliver Wood and Cedric Diggory shook hands, they mounted their brooms. With Madame Hooch's whistle blow, they launched into the storm.

Almost immediately, Harry found himself being blown to the side as he struggled to gain some altitude. He was glad for the goggles that came with the Quidditch Equipment that were enchanted to be impervious to rain and other such elements. Otherwise, he probably wouldn't be able to see anything through all the rain.

Sadly, there wasn't any way to deal with the deafening thunder. He had no idea how long he had been up there, but he finally managed to make out Oliver beckoning the team over as both teams were landing.

As Harry came down, George was shaking his soaking hair. "Quite a rain storm, isn't it?" He asked cheekily, causing the three female Chasers to glare at him.

Oliver took charge of the timeout at that point. "We need to end this match and quickly. We're holding a sixty point lead right now, but someone is going to get killed if we don't catch the Snitch soon. Harry, any luck?"

Harry shook his head. "None. It doesn't help that I'm getting half blinded by lightning bolts. I might need to fly a bit lower, both to avoid them and get a better chance of seeing it."

The usual tactic Oliver had devised for Harry during their games was for him to fly high above the match, and circle, searching for the Snitch. In this way he had the best possible view, he was kept safe from Bludgers, and he could gain amazing amounts of speed quickly in a power dive. Coming down lower would reduce his dive speed and leave him open to Bludgers, but he'd probably be able to see the Snitch more easily, and be safer from the lightning.

Oliver gave the go ahead nod, as the team broke and took to the air again. Harry quickly started to circle at a lower altitude, searching for the Snitch. Almost immediately, one of the Bludgers was tearing towards him. He managed to roll out of the way, but his soaking wet robes, weighted by accumulated water, dragged him down a bit, causing him to lose some of his altitude. He struggled to pull back up, as he kept searching for the Snitch.

As he turned to the right, he managed to catch sight of the Hufflepuff Chasers making a dash towards Oliver, only to be interrupted by Fred and George launching a concentrated Bludger attack, breaking up their formation and allowing Angelina to steal the Quaffle. Harry grinned, but as he raised his gaze up, he blinked as he found himself looking at what seemed to be a giant black dog sitting at the top of the stands he was facing. He blinked in surprise, only for the dog to have disappeared.

Shaking his head, Harry tried to focus, when a yell from Oliver drew his attention. He turned to see Oliver yelling something he couldn't hear, and gesturing wildly. He looked up in the direction Oliver was gesturing, only to see Snitch above him. Grunting he pulled up, pushing his Nimbus 2000 to maximum as he climbed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Cedric Diggory doing the same.

The Snitch shot upwards, with the two Seeker's chasing it still. It suddenly changed course, diving down and away from them. Harry grunted as he tried to go into a loop, only to yell as a bolt of lightning shot right past him. Out of sheer instinct he rolled to one side, losing time as he tried to orient himself. He turned, seeing Cedric already diving after the Snitch.

Harry cursed and pushed himself into a dive, his eyes focusing in on the Snitch. He slowly saw Cedric growing closer, as his faster broom began to overtake Cedric's. He was almost level with Cedric, when he felt a sudden chill sweep through him. Harry gasped out, the sudden cold robbing him of breath as he wildly looked around.

And that's when his eyes landed on them. On the ground below, there were dozens and dozens of Dementors, their hooded faces turned upwards and looking at him. He almost could feel their malicious glee, before another wave of cold overwhelmed him. Harry felt his body growing numb, his mind becoming foggy. Gritting his teeth, he angled towards the stands, hoping to try and land there. As he did, he slowly raised up one hand, pointing it at the Dementors. His teeth were chattering, but he managed to force out "_Ignus Globus,_" between his chattering teeth.

Almost immediately, his hand erupted into flames, before a large ball of fire leapt from his hand, and down at the Dementor's below. It impacted with a group of them, setting their robes on fire and causing them to shriek in pain. (1)

As it would turn out, this was the worst thing Harry could have done. Angered at the sight of their brethren wounded, the other Dementor's redoubled their efforts, focusing their attack on Harry. Harry almost immediately felt himself being engulfed in an ice cold fog. His vision became clouded, and he heard what sounded like a woman screaming in his head.

"_Please, no, not him! Not Harry!_"

"_Stand aside you pathetic mudblood._"

"_No! Kill me instead! Please, mercy! Spare him!_"

Harry slowly felt like he was falling through a fog, as he reached out a hand, as if to try and help the poor woman. And then he knew no more.

_Unknown Time Later_

Harry groaned softly, not knowing where he was or what was going on. All he knew was it was dark, and he could hear the soft murmur of voices. He grunted as he tried to open his eyes.

"Hey, he's waking up!" Called a voice from above him. Harry just grunted as he shifted, sensing several presences around him. Slowly, he began to crack his eyes open. Everything was a bunch of blurs above him, as he tried to make sense of where he was and what was going on.

He felt a sudden weight on his shoulder as one of the blurs moved a bit closer. "Take it easy there Mr. Potter. You've had quite the fall," came an older sounding female voice.

Harry groaned softly. "W-where….where am I?" He groaned out.

The older female spoke again. "You're in the Hospital Wing. And I'm seriously considering reserving a bed specifically for you," spoke the figure, now identifiable as Madame Pomfrey. She handed Harry his glasses, helping him to put them on.

His vision now much clearer, Harry glanced around. He found pretty much the entire Gryffindor team there, soaking wet and covered in mud. Ginny, Travis, Neville, and Hermione were also there.

Harry groaned as he tried to sit up, only for Madame Pomfrey to stop him by pushing him back down. "Rest. That's an order. And eat this chocolate," she said, handing him a huge bar.

Harry took it and quietly began to eat it. "What happened?" He asked. "The last thing I remember was flying in a typhoon playing Quidditch, then Dementors appearing, and then nothing," he said.

Oliver answered. "What you did was something I don't think anyone thought was possible. You injured a group of Dementors, severely," he said. "When the Dementors started attacking you, you launched a fireball at them and actually set them aflame. Of course the rest of the Dementors then seemed to attack you more, and you fell from your broom."

"If it wasn't for Dumbledore, you'd probably be dead or badly injured," Ginny added in. He used some type of spell to slow you down, then rounded on the Dementors and launched what looked like a phoenix made of silver at the Dementors. They practically fled from the field when that happened," she said.

Harry grimaced. "What about the match?" He asked. When he saw both Madame Pomfrey and Hermione open their mouths to berate him, he cut them off. "I know it's not important, but considering I'm alright, I'd like to know," he said.

Fred answered this time. "After you were taken to the Hospital Wing, Dumbledore had the match start again, once Ginny got ready to replace you. We gave it a good try, but Cedric…he caught the Snitch," he said. "Ginny still gave him a run for his Galleons though."

Ginny flushed a bit in embarrassment and pride at that, while Harry smiled at her. Then he blinked as a thought occurred to him. "What about my broom?" He asked. "Did anyone get it?"

Everyone glanced at each other nervously at that, before Angelina spoke up. "W-well…after you fell….the wind sorta….blew it away," she said.

George spoke next. "And well it…may have hit the...well…it hit the Whomping Willow," he said.

Harry's eyes widened, as Neville slowly held up a bag. "We…got the remains of the broom though," he said, setting the bag down.

Harry groaned softly as he pulled the bag to him and looked inside. There was nothing but shattered splinters and twigs. The broom was utterly destroyed, with no chance of repairing it.

Harry sighed as he set the bag aside. "Well that's just great," he muttered quietly.

Before anyone could respond, the door opened and Dumbledore came in, followed by Professor McGonagall and both Marian and Gareth Wallace. Gareth sighed quietly as he saw Harry. "This is really becoming a habit for you, isn't it?" He asked, as Marian hugged him before frantically checking him over.

Dumbledore sighed quietly as he came over to Harry. "Mr. Potter, I wish to first off say I am glad to see you're alright, and apologize deeply for what happened. The Dementors were never supposed to enter the grounds themselves without an escort from Ministry Auror's or the faculty of this school. Even now, precautions are being made to ensure that what happened today does not happen again."

Gareth clenched his fist as he looked at Dumbledore. "I still say that they should be removed from this school! They present a danger to the entire student body, not just to Harry and Travis," he said.

"I understand your concerns Mr. Wallace, and I agree with you completely. Nothing would please me more then to drive them back to Azkaban," Dumbledore said. "But as Minister Fudge informed us earlier, the Dementors are the best way to capture Sirius Black, should he continue his attempts to get into this school."

Earlier, while Harry was still unconscious, both Harry's adoptive parents and Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge had been brought to Dumbledore's office to discuss the problem. Both Gareth and Marian had been outraged at what had happened, and demanded that the Dementors be removed from school grounds, or that their own Battle Mages be allowed to act as a security force inside Hogwarts, both to capture Sirius Black, and to stop another attack by the Dementors. Dumbledore though pointed out that the presence of even more Battle Mages might spark another attack by the Dementors, if their hatred of the Mages was as powerful as Gareth had described. And Fudge had told them that the only other solution was to replace the Dementor's with Auror's, the police force of Magical Britain. And there was no way they could reassign enough Auror's to protect Hogwarts, and still be able to patrol the rest of the country. So for now, the Dementors would have to stay. However, a small detachment of Auror's skilled in handling monsters, beasts, and other things like Dementors were stationed in Hogsmeade to handle the Dementors.

Harry sighed as he leaned against his bed. "I see…if that's the case, is there any way for me to fight them? My fire spells don't seem to be enough," he said.

Dumbledore nodded. "That's actually something I wanted to talk to you about as well. I've already asked Professor Lupin to begin training you in a spell designed to repel Dementors. Your first lesson begins next Saturday. Your father has also requested that he be allowed to come on Sundays to train you and your brother in techniques to counter and hurt Dementors."

Harry let out a nod of acknowledgement, before yawning. Madame Pomfrey took over at that time. "Alright, that's enough for today. This boy needs to rest and recover."

Marian leaned over and kissed Harry's forehead. "Stay safe sweetie," she said, before doing the same to Travis. Gareth nodded to them both.

"I'll see you both next Sunday," he said, hugging Travis and gently ruffling Harry's hair, before they left with everyone else. Harry sighed as he laid back, setting his glasses aside and slowly closing his eyes, hoping to slip into a dreamless sleep.

Sadly, that wasn't the case. Harry found himself drifting in a fog, while feeling a cold sensation wash over him. In his dream, he tried to look around, but couldn't see anything in the fog. Nor could he move, leaving him helpless.

Suddenly, the sound of a female crying out reached him. It was the sound he had heard the two times the Dementors approached him. The same woman, crying and begging. And it sounded like it was getting closer. Harry blinked, as the fog seemed to be thinning out, revealing several figures. He tried to see farther into the fog, only for his eyes to widen as he realized what they were.

Before him stood his adoptive family and friends. Travis, Gareth, Marian, Ginny, Neville, and Hermione. And each was being held by a Dementor. The creatures had lowered their hoods, but Harry couldn't make anything out about their faces. But he could see each of them sucking something silvery from their victims. He cried out, struggling to reach them, to stop them. But it was in vain. Each of the Dementors, finished with their prey, dropped them to the ground, where they lay, their eyes dull and lifeless as they stared at Harry. He almost screamed at the sight, only to feel clammy cold hands grab him around his neck, and found himself being lifted up to a Dementor. As he neared the shadow that hid its head, he heard it speak.

"_**And now…you are ours**_," the voice said.

Harry awoke screaming and struggling with the sheets, which had become tangled around his body and neck. Panting, his eyes wildly shot around the room, scanning it for any dangers. The Infirmary was silent and dark, indicating the late hour, as moonlight streamed through the windows.

Harry took deep, ragged breaths, trying to calm himself. "Just...just a dream," he gasped to himself. "Just a dream."

Slowly, he lay back in the bed, trembling as he eyed the empty Infirmary. It might have just been a dream. But in the back of his mind, he couldn't help wonder if it was a dream…or a sign of things to come.

* * *

**And chapter. Wow this was a lot shorter then I had wanted. I was going to cover a lot more than just this, but something said that this was a good place to stop. So I guess this means an extra chapter for you all! **

**I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and the little twists that occurred. I know I did have some fun writing it. **

**1. Yes, I know that more than likely, Dementors wouldn't really be affected by flames like this. And no, Harry didn't just kill a group of Dementors. He only wounded them. I'm sort of basing the idea off of Dementors being similar to Ringwraiths in Lord of the Rings. Ringwraiths can be hurt and driven back by fire, but not killed. Dementors, at least in my universe, can be killed, but only by really powerful flames. Regular flames or low to mid level flame spells only hurt them.**


	6. The Horrible Truth

**So here we are in another chapter of Battle Mage of Hogwarts. Last time, Harry was attacked by the Dementors, and was promised lessons in how to defend against Dementors. **

**Now, Harry must regroup, and press onwards. So let's begin! **

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. That belongs to J. K. Rowling.

* * *

**Chapter 6**

**The Horrible Truth**

When Madame Pomfrey finally released him from the Infirmary, Harry was happy to be back in the hustle and bustle of school life. He needed the distraction of class and people to keep his mind off of the nightmare he had.

Sadly, some of that distraction wasn't pleasant though. Draco Malfoy, ecstatic over Gryffindor's loss, constantly celebrated by imitating Harry falling from his broom. Thankfully, there were few who actually enjoyed his performance. Most were astounded by the fact that Harry had wounded a group of Dementors with that fire ball he had launched at them. To their knowledge, it had never been done before.

Professor Lupin had returned to class the first Monday after the Quidditch fiasco, and after revealing his surprise at Snape's choice of monster for them to study, he had begun teaching them about hinkypunks.

When class was over, Lupin stopped Harry from leaving. "Harry, wait a moment please?"

As Harry turned to Lupin, he noticed that the DADA teacher seemed much paler, and if anything, his hair seemed a bit more gray. He hoped that whatever his teacher was sick from, he got well soon.

Lupin sighed as he leaned against his desk. "The Headmaster told me about what happened at your match. I'm sorry about your broom," he said quietly.

Harry shrugged. "Better it then me," he said. Harry had started looking into a replacement broom, but his parents told him to forget about it, that they would send him a new broom for Christmas. What type though, they were enigmatic about. He guessed that would be the surprise.

Lupin nodded with a smile. "I wanted to inform you that we would begin your lessons in defending yourself against Dementor's after Christmas. I'm afraid I have a little too much at the moment. Though I am told your parents will be sending you and your brother Travis some spells?"

Harry nodded at that. In fact, Blaze had arrived just that morning with a letter containing the spells both Travis and Harry should begin training in. Harry had made a copy and given it to Travis as quickly as he could.

Lupin nodded. "Good. Now there is something you can do before our first lesson. You can start looking up a spell, the Patronus Spell. And if possible, start practicing it. We'll see how you do at our first lesson. I would suggest possibly telling Travis the same."

Harry nodded in thanks to his DADA teacher, before heading off towards the Gryffindor Dormitories. When he got there, he quickly found his friends, and joined them to work on homework. He blinked though when he saw a pensive look on Hermione's face.

"Something up Hermione?" He asked as he sat down. Hermione glanced up, before shrugging.

"I'm not sure exactly. It's just something that has been bugging me a bit ever since the Boggart Lesson we had with Professor Lupin. Didn't you find it odd his Boggart looked an awful lot like the moon?"

Neville blinked. "Now that you mention it, it did kinda look like that."

Hermione continued the conversation. "And oddly enough, I noticed that Professor Snape took over Lupin's class around the time of the full moon too."

Harry raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Coincidence?" He asked.

Hermione shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know, it's just been bugging me a bit," she said, before shaking her head. "Anyways, we should get to work, shouldn't we?"

Harry nodded, as they started working on their homework. Ginny soon joined them, coming from her Charms class that the Second Year Gryffindor's had been in.

A couple hours later, after dinner, Harry was up in the boy's dormitory, searching through his trunk. Since he was alone, he figure now might be a good time to start looking through Merlin's Grimoire. He wasn't sure if he could start learning anything from the book here at school, but it wouldn't hurt to give it a precursory reading.

Finding the ancient, leather bound book, he hopped up onto his bed and drew the curtains, before opening the book and starting to read through it.

As he read the book, Harry couldn't help but admire at the thorough job Merlin had done. When Merlin's Grimoire had accepted him, it had converted the writing in the book into a more modern version of English, seeing how the book was originally written in early Latin. The book was divided up into multi chapters, with the first being Merlin's thoughts and notes on magic itself. The different ways it responded to his use of it, different types and field of magic, so on and so forth. After that, each section was devoted to Merlin's teachings and theories on individual aspects of magic, and the spells, incantations, and recipes for the various spells, potions, and runes he had come up with.

Harry soon found himself immersed in a section Merlin had labeled as "Defensive and Offensive Hex's and Jinx's". Here, Merlin had listed numerous different spells he had created not only to defend and battle against other wizards and witches, but also against creatures as well.

Harry continued to read the section quietly, only to stop. Blinking, he focused more on the section he was reading.

"_During my years travelling and learning about the new potential magic I had unlocked, I came across many magical dangers. Other wielders of magic, dangerous creatures, some of which were almost unimaginable. But these dangers could be faced, could be defeated. And yet, I came across a danger that to my knowledge, no amount of known magic could defeat. In my travels, I discovered proof that there were dark spirits and wraith like creatures. Beings that could not be touched by any form of steel or spell. If these creatures proved to be a threat to the growing world of both magical and non magical kind, how could they be stopped?_"

"_I put my mind to task at hand, to find a way to drive back or damage these spectral forces. The problem was finding a way to utilize magic to affect not a physical target, but a spectral target. One such example was a strange creature I found while visiting the country of India. Something they referred to as 'The Shadowed Death'. They described it as little more than a black cloak shape that moved along the ground. It would sneak into the bedroom of a sleeping victim, and smother them, then disappearing with the corpse. Very few people had ever survived an encounter with them. A few mages who had managed to fight and escape one had spoken of how most of their attacks seemed to almost pass right through it, with fire being the only truly effective deterrent. This meant that most normal spells I had thus far created would more than likely be ineffective._" (1)

"_I eventually was able to finish two spells that I found worked to deter or even kill targets of a more spectral nature. The first I called The Patronus Charm, and it acted as a deterrent spell. The caster would summon a powerful memory that created positive feelings. These feelings would be channeled into the magic put into the Charm, which would create a construct of these positive emotions. Considering most spectral creatures or enemies are generally created or fueled by negative emotions, the powerful positive emotions would create a shield, generally in the form of an animal that best embodied the caster's spirit and personality. My own strangely enough took the form of a swan. This 'Patronus' thus would stop most spectral creatures, and hopefully drive it back if the caster's will and positive emotions was strong enough._" (2)

"_The second spell I created is far more complex. But at the same time, the result is far more effective then the Patronus. Like the Patronus, this spell is fueled by the emotions of the caster. But unlike the Patronus, it is not reliant upon happiness. Instead, "Animi ardores Hestiae" or Spiritual Flames of Hestia, is fueled by the power of a person's emotions altogether. It calls upon the power of their spirit and will to create a fire that does not burn flesh, but burns the soul. It is a complex and draining spell and the effects depends upon the one casting it. One who is generally good or pure of heart will call forth a mighty flame that will damage or destroy evil in their path, whether it be a dark creature, or one with an evil heart. But should one of darkness cast the spell; their evil flame will increase the power of dark spirits, and darken even the purest spirits. It is this spell that I constructed to not merely stop spectral creatures that cannot be hurt by other means, but to damage or destroy them, if need be. However, because of the demanding nature of this spell, and the potential risk it carries if abused, I cannot freely teach this spell to those who now learn from me. Only those who I know will not abuse this spell can be allowed to learn it. Hopefully one day, it can be given freely._"

Harry blinked as he finished reading that final passage. A spell that could potentially do more than stop Dementors. A spell that could destroy them. Harry glanced down at the instructions, mentally debating with himself. Merlin spoke of the spell being not only complex, but incredibly draining. And yet Harry could not get the images from that nightmare he had out of his head. The Dementors destroying all he held dear. Making a decision, Harry grabbed a piece of parchment and ripped part of it off, sliding it into the book to mark that page. He would start looking into both of these spells, as backups in case whatever Professor Lupin taught him wasn't enough. Though he was betting that the DA Professor would probably start teaching him the Patronus Charm. Having marked the pages where those two spells, Harry began to read further into the book, feeling a sense of renewed hope spring up in him.

Meanwhile, a large black furred dog was slinking its way through the alleys and backstreets of Hogsmeade, heading towards the post office. If anyone had seen it, they might wonder why it had an envelope in its mouth. But in the fading light of evening, most people were rushing to finish their business and return to their homes. So no one saw the large canine approach the post office. Standing on its hind legs and bracing itself with its front paws on the wall, the dog managed to slide the envelope into a drop slot in the side of the post office. The black dog immediately trotted off, its furry tail wagging happily as it disappeared into the woods surrounding Hogsmeade and Hogwarts.

_December 8__th_

As the end of the term drew near, the festive Christmas spirit began to infect the students and faculty of Hogwarts. Flitwick and Filch could be seen decorating and cleaning up the castle, as students talked about their plans for the holidays. Not surprising, a good majority were planning on heading for home, considering the Dementors and Sirius black breaking into the castle. Harry himself was looking forward to getting away from the Dementors, even if for a few weeks. Hermione and Neville though were both planning on staying though, as Hermione's parents were going to a medical convention taking place in France after Christmas, and Neville's grandmother was going to visit his Aunt Eunice, who he wasn't entirely fond of.

Both Harry and Travis had begun studying the fire spells their father had sent them. The problem was finding a place to practice them, due to it being rather dangerous to practice them inside Hogwarts, and the Dementor's not exactly making it safe outside either. Eventually, it was agreed upon that they could practice on the Quidditch Field with Madame Hooch's supervision. They were often joined by their friends, who watched the two conjure flames from their hands, and launch them at simulated targets. They were in particular awe of one technique Harry used that let him launch a constant stream of fire from his hand.

In the week before the last week of term, there was an announcement for another Hogsmeade visit. Many of the Gryffindor 3rd Years and above eagerly talked about doing Christmas shopping and such.

Harry sighed quietly, hearing the students eagerly talk about it. The more they talked about it, the more he really wanted to visit Hogsmeade. He knew he could probably visit next year, but that was still a ways away. Instead, he and Ginny made plans for the day.

As the Saturday of the visit arrived, Harry and Ginny went to see Neville and Hermione off to Hogsmeade. The two waved at them as they left with the other students heading off to Hogsmeade.

"So, should we go get a start on one of the Christmas Projects? Or maybe go play Wizard's Chess?" Ginny asked. Ginny and Neville had introduced Harry and Hermione to the Wizard's version of chess earlier that year. Neville was pretty skilled at the game, and Ginny had picked some things up from her brother Ron, who was incredibly good at the game.

Before Harry could respond, he and Ginny were yanked into a nearby classroom. They found themselves looking into the grinning faces of Fred and George Weasley.

"Well well, if it isn't the hero of the family! And our little sister," Fred said.

George grinned. "Sorry for the rather abrupt way of getting your attention, but we have something rather secretive to tell you both. Or rather, give you both," he said, as he pulled out a folded piece of parchment.

Ginny blinked. "Ummm….what is it?" She asked, confused. Harry shared her sentiment, as he studied it. It looked to be a blank piece of really old parchment.

Fred and George both grinned. "To the untrained eye, this is a simple blank piece of parchment. But this is actually the secret to our success as the prankster kings of Hogwarts," George said, as Fred unfolded it, and pulled out his wand. He lightly touched the paper while saying "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good".

Before Harry and Ginny's eyes, lines of ink began to spread from the point where the wand had touched the map. The lines began to form designs, eventually turning into what was easily recognizable as a map. The top of the map, in great curly green words, read:

Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers

Are proud to present

**THE MARAUDER'S MAP**

Harry's eyes were wide as he studied the map. It was incredibly detailed, covering the entirety of the castle, as well as the grounds surrounding it. And moving around the castle was a mass of small dots, each with a small balloon near them that had their name.

Ginny glanced up at her brothers. "Where did you get this?" She asked.

They both grinned, as George spoke. "We got it in our very first year. Ohhh, we were a pair of carefree, innocent youths, ready to learn the intricacies of magic," he said in a nostalgic tone. Harry just snorted in disbelief, as Fred chuckled.

"Well anyways, we set off a couple of Dungbombs in the hallways and Filch strangely objected to it. He dragged us off to his office and threatened us with the usual, when we noticed a file cabinet drawer marked 'Highly Dangerous'. Of course our interest was piqued, and after dropping another Dungbomb, we swiped this from the drawer."

Harry blinked in a bit of confusion as he lightly traced a corridor that seemed to be leaving Hogwarts. There were actually seven of them all together. "Where do these go?" He asked, pointing to one of them.

Fred and George grinned. "Those are secret passages leading into Hogsmeade. We think they were created by the Founders as secret escape routes either from Hogwarts or Hogsmeade in case of emergency. We've been using a few of them to sneak into Hogsmeade whenever we want. And that is why we want to give it to you two."

Harry's eyes went wide. "You want us to sneak into Hogsmeade?!" He said in surprise.

Fred grinned. "Or use it for whatever. Sneak around the castle, look out for bad guys. We just thought you could use it more than us now. But if you do decide to sneak outside, here are a few tips. Filch knows about these four passages, but we're pretty sure he has no idea about these three. Now don't use this one behind the mirror on the fourth floor, it caved in last winter. And this one is right under the Whomping Willow so don't use it. But this one here leads to Honeydukes, and its right through the hump of the statue of the one eyed old crone right outside this room. Oh and if you want to wipe the map clean, tap the map and say 'Mischief Managed'. Otherwise anyone can use it."

Ginny looked up at them. "Guys, this is a pretty nice gift but…don't you think you should maybe give this to Dumbledore or something? I mean, this could be really useful in hunting down Sirius Black."

Both of them looked uneasily at each other. "Well, we did think about that," George said. "But well…honestly we've been keeping an eye on it practically every day that we could, and we haven't seen Sirius Black pop up anywhere on the map. Not to mention that…well…"

"We really wanted to thank Harry for saving your life Ginny. And this was the best gift we thought we could give him." Fred finished.

Harry was still looking at the map. "I…thank you guys. But you didn't have to give me anything at all. I was happy to rescue Ginny because it was the right thing to do."

Fred grinned. "And that's why you deserve it. If you want to give it Dumbledore or whoever, feel free Harry. It's yours. But I'd suggest using it at least once for your own personal needs."

"Now if you'll excuse us, we're off to Zonko's," George said with a grin, as the two twins left Harry and Ginny there.

Harry glanced down at the map, before looking at Ginny. "What do you think?" He asked.

Ginny crossed her arms. "Well first off I think my brothers are big jerks for not sharing something like this! And second of all…well…I really think we should maybe turn it in to someone. We could even do it anonymously. This could really help the faculty watch out for Black."

Harry nodded. "I agree, but…I am tempted to use it once…for myself."

Ginny sighed as she glanced at the map, swaying a little from side to side in indecision. "I suppose…we could maybe use it once… it would be cool to go to Hogsmeade a year early."

Harry grinned. "I suppose it would. But I think we should take my dad's Invisibility Cloak," he said, which caused Ginny's eyes to widened. She had heard Harry talk about the cloak, but she hadn't seen it.

Harry blinked. "Do you think we should invite Travis? He might enjoy this too," he said.

Ginny shook her head. "No. Last I saw of them, Colin was introducing him to some card game from the Muggle World. Something Japanese I think," she said.

Harry grinned. "Alright then. I'll grab my cloak, you wait here, okay?" with that, Harry rushed off towards the Gryffindor Common Room.

After passing by Sir Cadogan with a hurried 'Blackguard' ("I'll have ye head ye scurvy cur!"), Harry grabbed the Invisibility Cloak, stuffed it into the windbreaker he was wearing, and left again, drawing some stares. He soon returned to Ginny, who was standing near the statue of the Old one eyed crone.

Harry blinked when he got there. "I just realized…how do we get into the statue?" he asked, looking at it.

Ginny blinked as well, before growling. "Ohh, those two! I can't believe they forgot to tell us!"

Harry took the map from Ginny, and checked it to make sure no one was coming. And he blinked when he saw dots for himself and Ginny standing near the statue. A little extra bubble was coming off of his dot, and in it he could make out the word '_Dissendium_'. Harry looked at it, then at the statue. "Here, hold this," he said, giving her the map and pulling out his wand. He walked over to the hump on the statue's back, and pointed his wand at it, saying "_Dissendium_."

Nothing happened, so Harry tried waving his wand while saying the word. Again getting no result, Harry tried tapping it this time. And slowly the hump began to split open, revealing a narrow passage small enough to slip through. Grinning, Harry held out a hand to Ginny, who took it. With his help, she climbed up into the passage and slipped through. Harry quickly followed, and the passage sealed up behind them.

Down at the bottom, Harry and Ginny both used the _Lumos_ spell to create a small ball of light at the end of their wands. They found themselves in a stone room, with a single passageway. With a grin, Harry led the way down it.

The passage took many twists and turns, and slowly changed from a manmade stone passage into a natural one. After about a half hour of travelling, the passage changed into a flight of stairs that disappeared into the darkness. Harry groaned softly, looking at them. "This is a lot more work then I was expecting," he said.

Ginny chuckled as the pair began to climb up the stairs. It was a lengthy flighty, and Harry had passed two hundred when he found himself facing a trap door. Turning to Ginny, he placed a finger to his lips to signal her to be quiet, before slowly sliding the trap door up, peeking out. Not seeing or hearing anything, he slowly pushed the trap door open, and stepped out, turning the _Lumos_ spell on his wand off. Ginny soon followed suit, and the pair looked around, finding themselves surrounded by crates.

"We must be in the basement under Honeydukes," Harry said. They soon found a small flight of stairs leading up to a door. With a nod, the pair slipped the Invisibility Cloak on, and quietly headed up the stairs. Silently pushing the door opened, they slipped through and found themselves behind the counter. Ducking under it, the pair found themselves in a whirlwind of chaos, as students milled around the shop. As the pair managed to get their bearings and take in the store, all they could think was 'Wow'.

The store was wall to wall sweets and candies. Things that were easily recognizable, and things that neither had ever seen of, heard of, or thought of. The walls were packed with trays and shelves of chocolates and nougats and other sweets. Barrels dotted the floor, filled with Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, giant sherbet balls, and other confections.

Harry just grinned as he glanced at Ginny to his left. "Talk about candy heaven, ehh?" He asked. Ginny giggled as the pair slowly made their way through the crowd, expertly sliding through and trying not to bump into anyone. Harry suddenly grinned as he saw Hermione and Neville standing in one corner, looking over groups of exotic candies.

"Blood flavored lollipops? Who on Earth would eat those?" Hermione asked.

Neville shrugged as he held a jar of what looked like cockroaches. "Who knows? Probably the same people who would eat these," he said, shaking the jar.

Harry grinned at Ginny, before speaking up. 'Oh I don't know. I might eat one of those if someone dared me," he said.

Both Hermione and Neville nearly yelled, and Neville barely held onto the jar. They both began looking around wildly before Harry and Ginny took pity on them and opened the cloak enough for them to see them.

"Harry? Ginny? What are you two doing here?!" Hermione demanded, clutching her chest. Harry just kept grinning as he explained what Fred and George gave them, and how they ended up here.

Neville blinked. "So they've had a map of Hogwarts all this time? Wow. No wonder they knew their way around the castle so well," he said. Hermione though had a rather stern look on her face.

"Harry, you do realize how dangerous this map could be, yes? Or more importantly, how useful it could be to the faculty?" She asked, crossing her arms.

Harry sighed quietly, looking down a bit. "Yes Hermione, I do. But it could also be useful to us as well. Think about the danger we've been in the past two years, and now this year as well! Voldemort on Quirrel's head the First Year, and the Basilisk the previous year. Maybe having this would help keep us a lot safer."

Hermione bit her lip. "I suppose so, but… I don't know Harry," she said.

Harry nodded;. "I understand Hermione. And believe me, I am considering sending this to one of the teachers. But for now, let's just have some fun, okay? Please?"

Hermione finally relented. "Okay. But just this one time. After this, either send the map to one of the teachers, or use it only when necessary."

Harry nodded, grinning, before he and Ginny had to move to avoid hitting another student. "Maybe we should get out of here. It's pretty crowded."

Neville and Hermione nodded and went to pay for their things, while Harry and Ginny snuck out of the shop. A few minutes later, the former pair joined them and they took Harry and Ginny on a tour of the village. Eventually, they stopped at a small inn called _The Three Broomsticks_.

"How about we go in for some butterbeer?" Neville asked, his teeth chattering a bit. It was quite cold outside, so the other three agreed. The four entered the small yet busy establishment.

Hermione led Harry and Ginny to a table near one of the corners, while Neville went and got the butterbeers from the rather pretty witch who owned the place, Madame Rosmerta. He soon came over and passed out the butterbeers, with two of them disappearing under the Invisibility Cloak. Ginny grinned as she drank some. "Oh this stuff is incredible!" She said. "I wonder why my mother hasn't let me have any yet," she commented.

Harry just chuckled as he took a drink as well. It really was an excellent drink.

Their attention was drawn towards the door when a gust of wind hit them. Almost immediately, Harry and Ginny's faces paled as they saw Professor Flitwick and McGonagall enter, followed by Hagrid and the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. It took them a few moments to remember they were invisible under the Cloak, but Hermione apparently didn't want to take any chances. With a soft muttered spell, she caused a nearby Christmas tree to levitate and slowly slide over, blocking them from view.

A couple minutes later, the group of four sat down on a table near the one Harry and company were sitting at. They were soon joined by Madame Rosmerta, who started handing them their drinks. When she finished, Minister Fudge spoke.

"It's lovely to see you Rosmerta. Why don't you join us here for a bit?" He asked. The inn keeper accepted his offer and soon returned with her own drink, sitting down.

"So what brings you around here Minister?" She asked, as the five adults began to enjoy their drinks.

"This Sirius Black business. You heard about how he broke into Hogwarts on Halloween?" Fudge asked.

Rosmerta nodded. "I heard a rumor about it. Course business has been a bit slow lately due to all those Dementor's scaring off my best customers," she said with a bit of an edge to her voice.

Fudge shifted uncomfortably. "I know Rosmerta, I know. If there was a better way, I would have taken it. Especially with that business where they tried to assault Harry Potter during that Quidditch Match. But sadly, there is no one better to track down Sirius Black currently. And they're in a fury because Dumbledore won't let them back onto school grounds. Not that I don't blame Dumbledore," he added hastily, seeing McGonagall about to speak up.

Madame Rosmerta sighed. "What I can't believe is that Sirius Black went dark. I remember him from when he went to school at Hogwarts. He was one of the last people I'd expect to join You-Know-Who."

Fudge shook his head. "You don't know the half of Rosmerta. Most people think that those thirteen people he killed were horrible. But what he did before that was even worse."

Harry inadvertently leaned in, to make sure he heard what they were going to speak about. If he could learn more about Black, it might help better prepare him for the worst.

Fudge started up again. "You say you remember when he went to Hogwarts, yes? Do you remember who his best friend was?"

Rosmerta smiled. "Of course. Never saw one without the other. Right pair of troublemakers, Sirius Black and James Potter."

Harry froze at that, staring in the direction of the adults speaking. Neville, Ginny, and Hermione were all shocked as well.

McGonagall nodded. "Incredibly bright, the pair of them. I don't think we've had a pair that were incredibly smart, and yet squandered it on pranks and such. Except perhaps the Weasley Twins."

Fudge took over the conversation again. "Black was Potter's best man at his marriage to Lily Evans. And what's more, they actually named Black Harry's godfather! Can you imagine how the boy would react, knowing that? I shudder to think what would happen," he said quietly.

Harry was trembling at his point, the mug clutched tightly in his hands and shaking as well. He was spilling some butterbeer on himself, but he didn't notice.

"As it would turn out though, Black was a traitor the whole time. He was secretly a spy for You-Know-Who, passing him information on Dumbledore's efforts against him. Things came to a head when Dumbledore learned that You-Know Who was after the Potters. He tipped them off and told them to go into hiding. And to do so, they decided to use the Fidelius Charm," Fudge continued.

"The what Charm?" Rosmerta asked, a bit confused. Flitwick spoke up, since this was his field of expertise.

"The Fidelius Charm is a rather complex spell that is used to hide a secret within a single person. So long as that person does not reveal that secret, no one else will ever know of it. In this case, the Secret Keeper would be told the address of where James and Lily would be hiding, and no one else would ever know of that place's existence unless the Secret Keeper told them," the diminutive Charm's Professor said, before taking a drink from his beverage.

Fudge nodded. "Dumbledore wanted to take the position of Secret Keeper, but James insisted that it should be Sirius. Not even a week after the Charm was performed, He Who Must Not Be Named showed up on the Potter's doorstep, and the rest you all know," he said quietly.

Hagrid growled. "That filthy stinking traitor," he muttered. "Yeh know I saw him right before he went and killed all those people!? Dumbledore had sent me to get little Harry, and Black showed up on that flying motorcycle of his. Told me to give him Harry, saying he was the boy's Godfather. What if I had given Harry to him, huh? Probably ditch the boy in the ocean!"

McGonagall placed a calming hand on Hagrid's shoulder, as Fudge sighed quietly. "From what we can tell, Black, his true colors now exposed, tried to escape. Sadly, before we could get to him, one of his and James's friends from Hogwarts found him first: Peter Pettigrew."

McGonagall shuddered a bit. "That poor boy. He was never one for magic. I remember being so strict with him. If only I'd known," she said quietly.

Rosmerta gasped. "You don't mean?"

Fudge nodded sadly. "Peter confronted Sirius, yelling about how he betrayed Lily and James. He tried to go for his wand, but Black beat him to it. Blew up Peter, thirteen Muggles, and the entire street they were on. Here's the strange thing though. When Auror's got to the scene, Black was still there. Just standing over Peter's robes and laughing madly."

Rosmerta shook her head. "I don't believe it," she said quietly. "I just can't believe it."

Fudge sighed. "Black went straight to Azkaban after that. And he's been there for twelve years now."

Hagrid growled. "Good riddance, I say. Wonder how he got out though."

McGoangall nodded as well. "I wonder as well. No one's ever escaped Azkaban. So how did he?"

Fudge shook his head. "That's the great mystery. I actually saw him during an inspection I took of Azkaban, not too long before he broke out. Most of the prisoners there, they seem broken, or insane due to the constant exposure to Dementor's. And Black had them outside his cell all the time. But he seemed…normal. Calm even. He actually asked me if I had finished my paper, saying he wanted to do the crossword in it. In fact, the only signs of anything wrong with him were when he slept. The guards told me he was constantly murmuring 'He's at Hogwarts, he's at Hogwarts'. I'm pretty sure he means Harry."

Rosmerta sighed. "Well hopefully he'll be captured, and soon. I'd hate to think what he could do to Harry Potter if he got his hands on him."

McGonagall nodded. "So do I Rosmerta. But I don't think Harry will be an easy target for him either. As much as I dislike the idea of one so young being trained to fight and kill to the extent Harry has, those Battle Mages have truly made him strong. He actually took down a full grown Mountain Troll with the help of one of his friends, Neville Longbottom."

"And don't forget last year when he fought that Basilisk," Flitwick squeaked out.

Fudge sighed as he finished his drink. "With any luck, Harry won't have to worry about facing Black. For now though, I need to get going. I'm having dinner with Dumbledore," he said, as he put his money down for his drink.

The others soon followed his example, and they were soon gone. As they left, Ginny slowly turned to Harry, seeing him sitting there with a blank expression on his face. She gently touched his arm. "H-Harry? Are you okay?" she asked softly.

Harry didn't answer. Instead, he just stared at the empty space where the five adults had been sitting, seeing nothing at all.

* * *

**And scene. *sighs* Sorry for the long wait readers. I've had a lot on my plate here. First I got horribly sick and just couldn't do anything for like a week. And then my cat Smokey got sick, and we've been spending all this time and energy running him to the vet and getting him taken care of and stuff, and now we're having to do all this special stuff to care for him. If any of you are religious, please pray he'll be fully healed. And if you're not, then please understand why I'm taking so long to write.**

**I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. And I hope you'll enjoy what else is to come.**

**1. I'm actually referencing a creature known as the Lethifold here. It's native to tropical climates, but since most of the well known tropical climates (Carribean) are pretty much unknown to the European world at the time of Merlin, I went with one of the few known ones. Which are parts of India.**

**2. Due to the way I've constructed my timeline for this whole fanfic universe, the Patronus was not created to combat Dementors. It was created to combat spectral based creatures, such as the Lethifold. Dementors and Lethifolds fall under what I term 'spectral creatures'. A small minority of creatures that exhibit wraith or ghost like qualities, and thus in my opinion, require a spiritual based attack to deal with. Though fire is also good. Hence why in my fanfic here, the Patronus was designed to handle spectral based enemies, instead of just Dementors.**

**Please review. **


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